Rating: 
Summary: John Woo does it again!
Review: I personally *loved* this movie. It combines thrilling adventure with romance and a ton of comedy. There's just something about two grown men swinging from a chandalear that makes me laugh. Ivan Sergei is hilarious, and as a Nick Lea fan I absolutely loved it! No wonder it was made into a tv series! The tape quality was lacking, but I was thoroughly satisfied.
Rating: 
Summary: Actor/Story review
Review: John Woo's Once A Thief was made as a Television movie but succedes as a feature film. With BRILLIANT performances from the main cast, Once A Thief is a treat for action fans and for John Woo fans alike. It has all you would expect from a Woo film and more. I would like to Mention the outstanding performance of Nicholas Lea as Victor Mansfield(He should win an emmy)and Micheal Wong as one of the Tang Family. Thier Performances as well as the action make John Woo's Once A Thief a must see for all the family.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining!
Review: Not in any way a major blockbuster, but defitnitely worth checking out all the same. The chandelier scene is so funny, as is the confrontation that is interrupted to tidy the furniture. More of a tv movie feel, but compulsory viewing for any X-Files fan due to the presence of the undeniably sexy Nic Lea.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Ok let me say that I saw this movie on TV a few years ago and I was intrigued when it was called "John Woo's Once a Thief" because the original (Chinese version, 1990)with Leslie Cheung and Chow Yun Fat is one of my favorite movies. This movie had none of the slapstick laughs and rapport that Cheung, Chow, and Chung had in the original. The acting quality was also very poor. So for all of you seeing this washed out and weak version, do yourselves a favor and see the Chinese version.
Rating:
Summary: I've got a problem
Review: Ok so I'm a John Woo fan... I have most of his movies to date all on region 1, because no one here in the UK sees fit to release them, without being cut very badly. Now I have seen the movie 3 times and ok so it's not one of his best, but the action moves at a slick pace, with added twists. My main gripe however is that I have had 3 copies so far that refuse to even play on my DVD ( Panasonic A160 . Yes it is multi region, and no I have no trouble with other dvd's. I even got the Demolitionist ( another Simitar title ) that is an amalgam of robocop/darkman/shadow and numerous other action genre movies. This plays with no problems, and has got actual extra's ! Of the 2, if I could get a working copie of 'once a thief', well its worth having, at $12 you can't go wrong...
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Okay, so it's not the usual JW fare. On the other hand, it IS a fun, light action-comedy with aesthetic leads and some good lines. Heat and tension run throughout, as do enough stunts to keep me interested. I totally enjoyed it, and came back for more. It won't provide DVD-esque blood splattering over the screen, but then, if that's all you're after, why bother reading this far?
Rating:
Summary: Actually, pretty good
Review: Okay, so it's not the usual JW fare. On the other hand, it IS a fun, light action-comedy with aesthetic leads and some good lines. Heat and tension run throughout, as do enough stunts to keep me interested. I totally enjoyed it, and came back for more. It won't provide DVD-esque blood splattering over the screen, but then, if that's all you're after, why bother reading this far?
Rating:
Summary: Simple, Effective and Neat
Review: So it may not be a big blockbuster - that's O.K. It's all in the opinion of the viewer, and I, for one, liked it for itself.
Rating:
Summary: Once A Thief
Review: Still waiting for the tv series to come out on DVD. The pilot just wets the appetite for the rest.
Rating: 
Summary: Once a Thief (1996) DVD Review: Not recommended
Review: The original "Once a Thief" was a movie starring Chow-Yun Fat back in 1991 directed by John Woo. It was a wonderful movie and at the time "Face Off" and John Woo's name started to become popular in the US (not just among HK movie buffs), the TV networks wanted a John Woo movie they can show on television.Of course, NBC couldn't show the HK movies, so they redid the film with one notable HK actor, Michael Wong, Ivan Sergei known for his TV appearances, Sandrine Holt known for her UK films, Jennifer Dale who has done many movies but notably known for her voice on X-Men: The Animated Series and Nicholas Lea known for his work on X-Files. Will, I'm sure anyone would jump in a chance to star in a John Woo movie but since this was made for television, you are not going to see the typical John Woo magic. No million bullet shots or blood. The movie was definitely thinned out when it came to John Woo's violence. No particular attention to sounds such as the gun clicks but it did have a few usual slow motion scenes that he's known for. Of course, I recommend the 1991 version but those of us who watched this on television were either hardcore John Woo fans, curious or first-time John Woo viewers or someone who had nothing to watch that night. I purchased this DVD because it is lower priced than most DVD's and I'm a John Woo fan. Also, the movie has this "Director's Cut" logo on the top and it's rated R.  OK...I may not remember the TV version but what was the director's cut...I don't know. Why this got "Rated R" on it, I don't know because there is hardly any blood. Oh, well...there is violence (ala people shooting at each other) but wasn't that on TV? Maybe that's what was cut from TV...I don't know.   The video is pan & scan and the sound is not 5.1 of course. As for the extra's, there are none. Movie factoids...change that to "factoid". Just one page mentioning the cast, directed by John Woo and that's it.  Pretty much what you should expect is the typical movie of the night on DVD but in this case, directed by John Woo. You really have to be a John Woo fan to buy this DVD. Otherwise, this DVD is not recommended.
|
