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Les repentis

Original title: Once a Thief
  • TV Movie
  • 1996
  • R
  • 1h 32m
IMDb RATING
5.2/10
1.9K
YOUR RATING
Ivan Sergei, Sandrine Holt, and Nicholas Lea in Les repentis (1996)
ActionCrimeThriller

A couple working for the triad boss Tang decides to leave/flee the triad and Hong Kong. They meet again in Vancouver 1.5 years later fighting crime. She now has a fiance. The Tang triad come... Read allA couple working for the triad boss Tang decides to leave/flee the triad and Hong Kong. They meet again in Vancouver 1.5 years later fighting crime. She now has a fiance. The Tang triad comes to Vancouver to do weapons "business".A couple working for the triad boss Tang decides to leave/flee the triad and Hong Kong. They meet again in Vancouver 1.5 years later fighting crime. She now has a fiance. The Tang triad comes to Vancouver to do weapons "business".

  • Director
    • John Woo
  • Writers
    • Glenn Davis
    • William Laurin
  • Stars
    • Sandrine Holt
    • Ivan Sergei
    • Nicholas Lea
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.2/10
    1.9K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • John Woo
    • Writers
      • Glenn Davis
      • William Laurin
    • Stars
      • Sandrine Holt
      • Ivan Sergei
      • Nicholas Lea
    • 17User reviews
    • 8Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos10

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    Top cast33

    Edit
    Sandrine Holt
    Sandrine Holt
    • Li Ann Tsei
    Ivan Sergei
    Ivan Sergei
    • Mac Ramsey
    Nicholas Lea
    Nicholas Lea
    • Victor Mansfield
    Robert Ito
    Robert Ito
    • The Godfather
    Michael Wong
    Michael Wong
    • Michael Tang
    Alan Scarfe
    Alan Scarfe
    • Robertson Graves
    Jennifer Dale
    Jennifer Dale
    • The Director
    Nathaniel DeVeaux
    • Dobrinsky
    Greg Chan
    • Dance MC
    Young Ryu
    • Li Ann's Dance Partner
    Matthew Walker
    Matthew Walker
    • Interpol Judge
    Paul Wu
    Paul Wu
    • Judge's Aide
    Phillip Tsui
    • Fong
    Derek Lowe
    • Mill Security Guard
    Mike Mitchell
    Mike Mitchell
    • Biker 1
    Sonny Surowiec
    Sonny Surowiec
    • Biker 2
    Ben Immanuel
    Ben Immanuel
    • Moran
    • (as Benjamin Ratner)
    Debbie Podowski
    Debbie Podowski
    • Nurse
    • (as Deb Podowski)
    • Director
      • John Woo
    • Writers
      • Glenn Davis
      • William Laurin
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews17

    5.21.8K
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    Featured reviews

    6Leafan

    THE ART OF ACTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    What can I say, I love this TV movie! It combines a wonderful mix of Action and Humour, the acting is top class and it is directed by an action legend JOHN WOO!!! If you like being entertained and trilled then please, for your sake, watch this movie and perhaps the series that followed it if you can, superb stuff!!!!! As the tagline says: The Art Of Action!
    grey-15

    okay, it's not macbeth....but it's john woo darnit....!

    alright.... i'd have to say this isn't the worst in the john woo catalog.... i found myself laughing and getting that rush you only get in one of his movies.... i thought the characters were enjoyable and after reading the john heard book, 'ten thousand bullets: the cinematic journey of john woo', i had new respect for the man....no, the legend.... i would only recommend this movie, however, if you're a true woo-phile.... it has all the earmarks of a good woo flick, just like balckjack and even hard boiled.... you just need to understand the man loves to make movies.... he doesn't care if they're TV movies or theatrical releases or straight to video....he just loves his art.... i have one problem with this flick and one large focus of praise.... now, not seeing the original....(john woo says it's not something he was ever happy with....) i'm not sure if my thoughts are whole, but here goes.... the bad thing....not enough of the double gun action.... the good thing....was a scene where the two good guys, the one bad guy and the girl are all in a mexican standoff and the girl, (who all three guys are in love with....) steps in the middle and they all carefully lay their guns down just long enough to get her to safety and then all heck breaks loose.... that was a cinematic masterpiece....! over all i'd give it a good rating....not to shabby for TV....
    6Leafan

    John Woo at his best!

    What can I say?, I love this film, I love it! this is John Woo at his best. It combines a top notch cast of Actors including Nicholas Lea (X-Files), Ivan Sergei (Opposite of Sex), Sandrine Holt (Outer Limits) and Micheal Wong (A Better Tommorow) and such a brilliant original story-line! Buy this now, if you love action or comedy or not. BUY IT NOW!!!
    So0ho

    Lacking in almost every way...

    I rented this movie because I thought Woo and Lea were cool, and I was wondering what the results would be when they paired up. Well the results were horrible: The plot was uninteresting and completely unbelievable, the dialogue was absolutely horrible, and the actors werent good enough to save it. Despite my admiration for the two mentioned above, I can't pull myself to even saying that this movie was acceptable; it was just plain bad. If you get it, then you'll regret having spent that $2 on renting it.
    2fmarkland32

    Once a Thief , always a dud...

    John Woo directs a TV drama about a couple of thieves (Ivan Sergei and Sandrine Holt) who escape to Canada after dishonoring their former boss in Hong Kong, however Sergei is caught by the cops and comes to Canada after his time only to find Holt and Lea in a relationship their soap opera antics must wait while assassin Michael Wong looks to do in our trio out of revenge for their disloyalty. Before Woo stunk up the multiplexes with Mission Impossible 2, Windtalkers and Paycheck. This and Blackjack were regarded as Woo's worst movies. Blackjack believe it or not has it's merits, it was plot heavy but it featured some good action and decent thesping in making for at least a tolerable movie. Once A Thief however is a sub-par take on Woo's own original and although I haven't seen it yet, one doubts it is as bad as this stinker. The main problem with this movie is just how much it feels like Melrose Place with two guns. It becomes so soap operish in it's moronic threads involving the three leads that I for one was hoping somebody would put a bullet in all three of them. Also it takes talent to be an action star, Chow Yun Fat, Jean-Claude Van Damme,John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Dolph Lundgren and even Christan Slater are far more credible than our teen leads which never convince us that they would do anything but crap their pants when the guns went off. Sergei in particular is a charisma-less lunkhead who seems to have wandered in from a stoner commercial. This is a very dull movie and the action sequences would be good had they not been botched beyond belief, Woo films no suspense and somehow the movie just keeps going for a ridiculous amount of time. This is for only die hard John Woo fans and only they will be disappointed by the awfulness here.

    * out of 4-(Bad)

    More like this

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    6.9
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    6.7
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    7.2
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    Related interests

    Bruce Willis in Piège de cristal (1988)
    Action
    James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Sharon Angela, Max Casella, Dan Grimaldi, Joe Perrino, Donna Pescow, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Tony Sirico, and Michael Drayer in Les Soprano (1999)
    Crime
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Goofs
      When Mac and Victor end up hanging from the chandelier, the extension cord tied between them becomes fairly obviously a black steel cable, then turns back into an extension cord once they are no longer hanging on it.
    • Quotes

      [a gun is pointed at Li Ann]

      Li Ann: Tell him to put it away or I'll make him swallow it.

      Mac: I've seen her like this, you're gonna swallow it!

    • Alternate versions
      There are about 12 minutes of additional material in the "Director's Cut". The chandelier scene is much longer. There's a bit where Mac tries to bite Victor's finger. And the ending is slightly different. There's a part where Li Ann tricks Mac and Victor into holding hands, and some of the dialog that was in the aired version is cut out (the part where Li Ann tells them she actually hates roses, for example).
    • Connections
      Followed by Les repentis (1996)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 10, 1998 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • Canada
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Once a Thief
    • Filming locations
      • Hong Kong, China
    • Production companies
      • A-Pix Entertainment
      • Alliance Communications Corporation
      • CanWest Global Television Network
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 32m(92 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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