4 Star

Chow Yun-Fat does a French Crime Caper.

After the release of Bullet in the Head in 1990, John Woo had a very busy 1991 due to filming Once a Thief and his seminal Hong Kong film Hard Boiled, which launched his career in the West, filming with Hollywood stars i.e. Jean-Claude Van Damme (Double Impact, The Bouncer), John Travolta (The Fanatic, Swordfish). Once a Thief is Woo’s nod to the French crime capers that he loved. This 4k release by Arrow Video brings all the slapstick action to life as there is also plenty of Chow Yun-Fat and Woo over the top action sequences. Definitely one to add to your Hong Kong action shelf.

Paris France, and three seasoned art thieves are casing out their next score. They are James (Leslie Cheung, The Bride With White Hair, A Better Tomorrow), Red Bean Pudding (Chow Yun-Fat, RICH AND FAMOUS / TRAGIC HERO, Wild Search), and Red Bean (Cherie Chung, THE DEAD AND THE DEADLY, THE LUCKY STARS 3-Film). Red Bean is the attractive distraction as the museum loads crates of priceless art. She marks the crate they want with perfume, so that it can be easily identified when they do their daring raid on the road. This is the first action, with cars and motorbikes as they catch the truck, get onboard, get their booty and get away to the awaiting buyer.

These three happy-go-lucky thieves were not always so fortunate as they were orphans on the streets of Hong Kong, and it was Boss Chow (Kenneth Tsang, The Killer, THE POLICE STORY TRILOGY) who took them in, and taught them the ways of the streets, and how to survive them. He is still interested in what they are doing in Europe. So is the cop that caught them stealing and became their Godfather (Paul Chu, The Big Heat, Battle of No Truce).

If you are ever in trouble come see me.

The client is happy with his new acquisition, but what he really wants is cursed painting The Harem servant girl by Paul Trouillebert. It has been kept in the same mansion since 1874, and it has never seen the light of day, and he is willing to pay five million dollars for it, or if you get Red Bean to translate it is two million, as she wants them all to retire.

How about Iraq? No wars in Iraq!

But James is always after the big score and a challenge, so he heads off on his own to claim it, but he always needs Red Bean Puddings help so there he is.

I made you so much money in the past, it is only right I help you spend it.

The adventure begins. There is loads of action as our hero’s ply their skills with guns and props in this action packed action film.

Once a Thief Limited Edition is available on 4K UHD

 

4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original lossless Cantonese and English mono audio, plus alternate mono mixes for both languages
Optional English subtitles for the Cantonese soundtrack and English for the deaf and hard of hearing subtitles for the English soundtrack
Brand-new audio commentary with Asian cinema expert James Mudge
Handling a Heist, a brand-new interview with director John Woo
Heists and Lows, a brand-new interview with producer Terence Chang
Thoughts About Thievery, a brand-new interview with co-writer Clifton Ko
Stealing Some Shots, a brand-new interview with director of photography Poon Hang-Sang
Art of the Steal, a brand-new interview with editor David Wu
Hong Kong Confidential, a brand-new appreciation by author and film historian Grady Hendrix
Once a Star, Always an Icon, a brand-new appreciation of star Leslie Cheung by Hong Kong cinema expert Frank Djeng
Up Close and Personal, an archival interview with John Woo
Brothers in Arms, an archival interview with Terence Chang
Archival interview with actor Kenneth Tsang
Original theatrical trailer
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley
Collectors’ booklet featuring new writing on the film by Priscilla Page