Une balle dans la tête

One of the most intense, powerful, and profound cinematic motion pictures. BULLET IN THE HEAD (The original Cantonese title is known as DIE XUE JIE TOU.) is mesmerizing and perplexing, yet equally emotional motion picture that gives the audience a completely different perspective on the Vietnam War...and how this event has changed the lives of three friends forever.

Ben (Tony Leung), Frank (Jacky Cheung), and Paul (Waise Lee) are three companions who have decided to escape from the perils of their native homeland in Hong Kong. Since Ben and his other two friends wanted to escape from their troublesome pasts, they felt that they could start over and make new, enriching lives for themselves. The three saw opportunity in the country of Vietnam. Little do these three realized that no matter where they would settle, violence was bound to ensue.

In 1967, the conflict between North and South Vietnam has elevated. Riots have been precipitated, fear and panic are widespread, and carnage is rampant. The three main characters are unfortunately caught in the middle of the Vietnam War. Eventually, more mayhem is not far behind.

As the three are trapped and incarcerated in the prisons of the Vietcong main quarters, their friendship with each other is slowly disintegrating...their lives hang in the balance... Whether all three of them can trust each other now and make it out alive is a question that remains ambiguous...

BULLET IN THE HEAD is one of the most sickening albeit cathartic films the viewer will ever witness. Director John Woo is definitely one of the most contemporary action directors around. He spares no punches or bullets with his incredible bursts of action sequences; yet he can still deliver a striking message about the powers of morality and how a humane attitude can help overcome all opposition. BULLET IN THE HEAD has more than enough action to satiate viewers of effervescent action films. There are tons of explosions, shoot-outs, and an even riveting helicopter rescue mission that is a true, vivid climax. These haunting images of BULLET IN THE HEAD, from the unspeakable acts of slaughter, to the moments where friendships triumph over all, will paint an indelible picture in one's mind.

BULLET IN THE HEAD is an unconventional, action-packed film that is moving and enthralling. The disturbing violence in this movie grips the audience as it coerces them to feel the pain. BULLET IN THE HEAD, instead of glorifying violence, rather shows the anguish, the abhorrence, and the abomination of how a once potentially prosperous country now lays in shambles thanks to the devastating war. Cities have been destroyed, villages are burned, and lives are forever scarred, physically and mentally.

Through the experiences of three unlikely heroes in BULLET IN THE HEAD, the viewer can commiserate with all the suffering the people in Vietnam have tangibly felt. The realism of the atrocities of the Vietnam War are captured thanks to the astute direction by John Woo.

BULLET IN THE HEAD is one movie which will adhere to your thoughts forever, even if you watch it only once. This film has excellent action scenes, and a constant mix of feelings as the movie jerks around with the character's emotions. They range from victorious, to heartbroken, to horrific. The cast, including the three leads along with Simon Yam and Fennie Yuen are excellent.

BULLET IN THE HEAD may well be John Woo's best film. Although the graphic violence in BULLET IN THE HEAD is unbearable, it is not gratuitous. The inhumanity of the supercilious villains is shown as they evoke trepidation in their victim's eyes. BULLET IN THE HEAD is one violent, relentlessly brutal yet provocative thriller.

If you feel that you are mature enough to handle the violence in BULLET IN THE HEAD, then by all means, rent this film. You'll discover the true brilliance of John Woo in this rarely seen film in America. He has talent for creating some of the most versatile action films ever! Thrills, character development, and a thought-provoking plot all commingle together in BULLET IN THE HEAD. This is one movie that is impossible to watch throughout its entire duration without cringing, but the chance to see this rare gem is well worth the time.

RATING: ***1/2 out of ****.

How can you not like a movie that starts out with a bloody street fight to an instrumental version of The Monkees "I'm a believer"?

When you start watching this you'll probably laugh at some of the sentiment of the beginning, (the three main guys jump rope, ride bikes, and sing together for instance. Go ahead, try not to snicker, you won't succeed.) This is all a perfect setup for the following sucker punch of the most brutally and entertainingly violent and horrifying series of events ever put on film. People are shot in their head, people explode, demonstrators are shot, exploding Cuban cigars, etc. The thing is that this mix of melodrama, action, and violence comes together into a cohesive whole and works amazingly well.

By the end of the film will drain you physically and emotionally from what you have seen, which is probably why so many people would prefer the shorter ending of this movie. The ending fight is one of the best ever filmed, but by the time you get to it you'll be exhausted. Personally, I like the long ending.

Honestly, this is the best movie I have ever seen. It is the best mix of melodrama and violence ever put on film. It's over the top in almost every way imaginable. It's suprisingly moving. I love it.

"Bullet in the Head" (aka "Die xue jie tou") is a classic Hong Kong action movie from the grandfather of action movies director John Woo, of course. And anyone with a taste for Hong Kong movies would have to have lived under a rock if never having come across a John Woo action movie.

John Woo sort of deviates from his usual formula with "Bullet in the Head" in comparison to a movie such as "Hard Boiled", for example. While "Bullet in the Head" definitely has lots of action sequences, it is not really as action packed as most of his other movies. Instead, there is a healthy amount of drama and character building in "Bullet in the Head". Which was actually serving the movie quite well.

And even in 2019, this action movie from 1990 still stands tall and is definitely watchable and enjoyable still. Sure, you just don't concern yourself about the oddly colored blood used, but focus on the action and the acting.

"Bullet in the Head" features some very iconic Hong Kong actors, such as Tony Chiu-Wai Leung, Jacky Cheung and Simon Yam, whom all carried the movie quite nicely. And the supportive cast were also doing great jobs.

I have watched "Bullet in the Head" three times or so by now, since it was initially released and I had it on VHS back in the day. And I will say that the movie definitely has value to it, as it can viewed again and again with years in between.

If you like Hong Kong action movies from the golden age of over-the-top-action, then you will definitely have to watch "Bullet in the Head".

I've been using my DVD subscription service to go back over old films that I have either not seen or have not seen for ages and am focusing on those from the Far East that everyone expects you to have seen – mostly, at this point, the work of Kurosawa. I came to Bullet in the Head because I do enjoy John Woo's action films – even some of those he did when he came to America. As an "earlier" Woo film, I knew what to expect from Bullet in the Head, or at least I thought I did. Going with it we appear to have the standards of his creations all in place. Criminals, tragedy, flamboyant gunplay and massive action sequences with relationship drama going on in the middle of it. All of this is here and it works pretty well. Essentially it is the tale of three friends who go through crime and war together, changing their dynamics in tragic ways. At this level it is fine and I was interested in the characters and the relationships – OK, not a lot of complexity in there but enough to suit an action film such as this.

The action sequences involve the usual jumping around, use of slow-motion and multiple showers of bullets. So, in essence, I can see why the film is loaded down with 5* reviews from the majority of the site's prolific reviewers (that's the filter I use when viewing the comments section), because the film does deliver much of what one would expect from John Woo and John Woo is/was good at doing it. But here is the problem – he sets it in Vietnam. Not only that but he acknowledges the horror of the war and the impact it had on those involved in it – mental and physical. OK, so nothing wrong with that in itself but it doesn't work when you have one scene of extreme violence that is shocking and harrowing and then you following up immediately with one that is exciting and well-choreographed. The extreme violence doesn't take away from the central story (because it is part of it) but by mixing it up with a much darker version of it he sets out a real challenge for himself, which is – can he manage to produce a film that explores themes covered in "serious" films such as Deer Hunter, while also delivering an action film based on the violent splintering of three friends? Sadly the answer is no, he cannot, and this is demonstrated within the film. It is a clumsy affair that does deliver harrowing scenes but is scared to linger on them or to do more with them that cheapen them by only having them as a device to move the plot the way it needs to go. It also doesn't help that Woo doesn't seem interested in being subtle or clever – so a film that really should end in an emotional kick in the guts in the boardroom (where the explosions are character based) spills out into a car chase and shootout that isn't exciting and doesn't fit with the tone of the ending. Within this the cast do a reasonably good job and some do almost manage to carry the film across the jumps in content and style. I always like Tony Leung and he is a good piece of casting. He doesn't totally manage to convince with what the script asks him to do but he is a good heart of the film. Cheung is not quite as good but works well with Leung to build a believable friendship. Lee has less to work with as his character is a lot simpler and I thought his performance was weaker as a result. Yam was an invincible and cool presence that didn't add a lot to the story but made for a good character.

Overall, Bullet in the Head produces many of the things that I came to the film for and as such had enough to keep me interested. The problem was that it never hung together convincingly and the use of the war as a backdrop introduced things that could have been impacting but just didn't gel. The action scenes are good (even if not as well choreographed due to the scale of the battles) but the plot is the start of the problem in a film that is never what it should be and certainly shouldn't be listed among the "must-see" films from Woo.

John Woo directs an absolute merciless Vietnam war drama that is comparable to The Deer Hunter in it's power and is quite possibly one of the greatest movies of Woo's career. The movie follows three trouble-making kids (Tony Leung, Waise Lee and Jackie Cheung) who are exiled to Vietnam to escape the Hong Kong authorities after a rival gang member is killed by them, once in Saigon the run into "The Viet Cong" who are far worse than the HK authorities and their rival gang and what the V.C do to our trio makes them regret in all their hearts that they didn't go to prison in the much safer Hong Kong. A Bullet In The Head would be a tale about friendship overcoming the hard times of war, if the friendships in the movie actually prevailed. Instead the movie gives us a heart wrenching look at war and what it does to the three friends in the movie. The kids in the movie are in the beginning not very sympathetic and give off the impression that they deserve what they get but once they go to Vietnam you realize just how much in over their head they are and Woo filters the emotion from this situation and effectively conveys a story that is hard to watch but very rewarding nonetheless. After witnessing the debacle of Windtalkers I decided to see if Woo could direct war, well it goes without saying this blows that one out of the water. This is up there with Hard Boiled and The Killer as Woo's best film.

* * * * out of 4-(Excellent. A Must See!)