Rating: 
Summary: Don't Make this your first John Woo flick.
Review: This is my second favorite John Woo movie with great touches of action and drama, When I first saw this film (about 5 years ago) I wasn't used to seeing this much violence on screen (And I thought Lethal Weapon was extremely violent at that time) I was in shock and more then once my jaw dropped. This film is VERY violent But compared to other action films this is REALLY tame nowadays. The minor points of this film would be some bad acting to some worse acting in some spots, some weird cuts and editing, the subs were terrible, as the same with the audio quality and some of the camera work is bad, but this is John Woo's first (if you can count heroes shed no tears) landmark heroic bloodshed film so we all know he could have done worse MUCH worse. Yun fat chow, Ti Lung and Leslie Chung have their good moments to bad moments, most of the good moments goes to Chow and Ti while Leslie had only one or two moments. The plot is like this A cop must confront his criminal brother. That's it. If your the typical Hollywood action goer this is your perfect find. But as I said if your new to the heroic bloodshed films don't make this your first one, I'll say stick with the killer and hard boiled for a few weeks then move on. But if your the Hollywood action movie goer make this your first if you can handle it move on to the other heroic bloodshed films and so on. This film is a big landmark in the action genre and a even bigger landmark to the underground action genre. I really recommend this film to any action fan!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Woo Delivers
Review: The relationship between two brothers on opposite sides of the law, and the loyalty of friends is explored in "A Better Tomorrow," an action/drama directed by John Woo. As with any Woo film there's plenty of action here, but at the heart of the film is the story itself; and that's what sets Woo apart from all other so-called "action" directors. Woo frames the drama with some astoundingly intricate and well choreographed action sequences (gun play and hand to hand fighting), but integrates the story seamlessly, which raises this film, as with all of his films, levels higher than the average action movie. In this one, older brother Ho (Lung Ti) is a high ranking member of a crime syndicate specializing in counterfeit money; his younger brother, Kit (Leslie Cheung) is beginning his career as a detective. Complicating matters is the death of their father (Feng Tien) and the involvement of Ho's best friend and colleague, Mark (Chow Yun-Fat), and Kit's girl, Jackie (Emily Chu). In the end, at the core of the action, it becomes a story of love and loyalty, and the sacrifices sometimes necessary in life to make it work and give meaning to it all. Woo has impeccable timing, not only in the action sequences, but with the drama as well; he knows how to use the camera to heighten the emotional impact of a pivotal moment, and successfully injects a caesura at just the right time, which maintains the perfect amount of tension that extends the drama and serves to hold the audience enthralled. That he can employ these techniques equally within the action and dramatic sequences is why his movies have such wonderful flow and rhythm; it creates a "whole" as opposed to merely a series of scenes strung together to tell a story. Directors of all genres would be well served to study Woo's techniques. Woo gets the most out of his actors as well. Lung Ti gives tremendous depth to the character of Ho, successfully conveying the inner struggle of this man attempting to make amends with the brother he loves, while the charismatic Chow Yun-Fat gives a riveting performance as Ho's closest friend. His screen presence is dynamic and commanding. Woo firmly establishes the depth of loyalty between the two, and skillfully the actors make it convincing and credible, which makes the final heroics all the more believable. An exciting, memorable film, "A Better Tomorrow" is thoroughly entertaining, and a tribute to a truly great director, John Woo, who seems to get better with every film he makes. For a combination of action and drama, there isn't another director in the history of movies that does it better than Woo.
Rating: 
Summary: One of John Woo's best!!!
Review: This classic Hong Kong flick is one of John Woo's best films!!! 2 sequels followed!!! This is the first and the best of the series!!! The action is intence!!! Anchor Bay did a top notch job with this DVD!!! I'ts in 16:9 Widescreen and has multiple language tracks and great subtitles!!! Some trailers and production notes round out this awesome DVD!!! Two thumbs up!!! A+
Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie, Bad Collector's DVD
Review: Okay... so if you're only interested in the movie, of course this is quintessential John Woo melodrama-action. Chow Yun Fat is the master of matches mouth moving and handgun hysterics. But the DVD is badly flawed. The subtitles are too big as the other review said, but they're also late (show up after the dialogue) and inaccurate (its text from the original) *I'm Chinese so I know--I just turn it off*. In addition, the description is incorrect--there's no "additional footage" or "behind the scenes stuff." Only the lightest production notes on the cast and crew--stuff you could get from IMDB. Also the transfer is a bit faded and lacks real richness that DVD is suppose to provide. In addition, the annoying startup promo (which lasts over 3 minutes) before the actual menu starts can't be skipped. I had rated this as 3 stars, but changed it to 2. I still love the movie, but feel a little jipped--especially since I bought the entire trilogy. Where's Criterion when you need them?
Rating:
Summary: Hong Kong action packed punch!
Review: It's plain to see that this is a rather old film, but there is no challenging the fact that it has stood the test of time. A Better Tomorrow is simply a good guns ablaze kill-fest, which although is not the most friendly ideology there is an added and certain comedic value due to the need to finally re-load ones gun after the millionth shot is fired.
Standout performance would have to be that of veteran international action superstar Chow Yun-Fat (Crouching tiger hidden dragon, Anna and the King, The Replacement Killers, The Killer and Hardboilded... to name a minute portion of his filmography). This film set the standard for all other Hong Kong action films to come, as it was one of the most original storylines to screen in HK cinemas for a long time, as Kung-Fu films had been most prominent up till this cinematic turning point.
Director John Woo, proves himself time and time again that he knows the intricate workings of crime, violence and honour among theives and all codes these imply. There is nothing more than a high bodycount, billions of bullets fired and the possiblity that the bad guy might not win... or will they? John Woo's Hollywood productions have not come anywhere near the perfection in action he was allowed to attain in Hong Kong cinema, which is unfortunate, but the cultural divide will slowly learn to part and free reign will eventually be granted to Woo, allowing him to retain and continue outstanding work such as and hopefully similar to that of A Better Tomorrow for the American masses.
There is nothing glamerous about violence and crime as most normal humans realise, and this is made perfectly clear toward the films 'fire and brimstone' climax... will crime have paid after the dust and the smoke settles?
Followed by A Better Tomorrow 2 and A Better Tomorrow 3 (prequal). Parts 1 and 2 are must sees, back to back if possible!Question: What do Hong Kong action and soft toned midday soap opera's have in common? (Give up?)
Answer: Twin Borthers!!
Rating:
Summary: 3.9 out of 5
Review: Here it is, folks: John Woo's A BETTER TOMORROW, the classic action/drama that started it all. The film stars Ti Lung and Leslie Cheung as two brothers: one a successful counterfeiter, the other a newbie police officer. Their friendship seems like it will never die; until on one fateful night, Ti Lung turns himself in. From there it's a violent, double-barrelled gangster flick of a film that remains one of the biggest hits ever released into Hong Kong. Chow Yun Fat is especially superb, however, and no doubt the highlight of the film, as Lung's best friend and an enforcer. He has such a star presence to him you can't help but like him. Woo's directing is also superb in his breakthrough film: the action sequences are rarely rivaled. Action fans can't miss this ultimate slice of Hong Kong cinema.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: One word sums It up "CLASSIC". Great acting form the cast. Great story along with action. The movie is very sad and the one scene near the end that shock me. It'll propbably surprise you to cause you don't see it coming. Definately the best action movie ever made period.
Rating:
Summary: Quintessential John Woo.
Review: John Woo has made better films since (The Killer, Bullet in the Head), but A Better Tomorrow epitomizes everything about him that has captured the imagination of both Hong Kong and America. The influence of this film has been felt in films as far-ranging as Reservoir Dogs, Dead Presidents, Desperado, and The Matrix. In terms of filmcraft, there are still rough edges to this film that make it less than perfect. The romance between Jackie and Kit is silly and the humour not as funny as it thinks it is. Emily Chu overacts badly and all of her dialogue is soullessly overdubbed, and Leslie Cheung has not yet gotten in touch with the simmering complexity that will eventually make him into a fine actor. He is embarrassing in the first half of the film. But these flaws are easily negated by the full-grown, powerful mythology that Woo crafted out of his experience in martial-arts film. Chow Yun-fat and Ti Lung's characters, loosely related to the characters in Woo's best martial-arts film Last Hurrah for Chivalry, are heroic swordsmen trapped in the bodies of gangster gunmen, and in this film Woo debuts the balletic gunplay which becomes his trademark. The first occurrence of this -- Mark (Chow)'s hit on a traitorous business partner -- is simply exhilarating, both because of its historical context and the meticulous execution, which rivals the best rhythmic action scenes of Akira Kurosawa and Sam Peckinpah. And Chow and Ti's performances, early corny humour aside, are terrific, sustaining the ultra-romantic sense of honour, friendship and loyalty which is directly interpreted from historical martial-arts epics in Chinese literature and film. Woo's mentor Chang Cheh was a master at these stories, and Woo himself has enriched it greatly by successfully adapting them to a modern setting. This DVD edition, despite cheap presentation (Anchor Bay should be ashamed for the chop-suey DVD menu design), is somewhat decent. Unlike the VHS editions which bear the same artwork, this DVD *does* contain the original dialogue and music track. A very good thing, for the earliest American VHS editions of this film had godawful dubbing. Not a danger here, though, and the picture and sound quality I heard on this disc seem quite okay. A key film for anybody even remotely interested in Hong Kong cinema, or action films in general.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: I consider this Chow Yun-fat movies of them all. this movie made him a star and he made this moviea instant classic. Every body in this film were perfect in this movie, and this movie is tragic.
i watch this movie when i was 10 years old and rented again yesterday to watch it, and i still loved the movie and that rarely happens to me.
Anyways It would be a good idea to check it out or i rather you buy it cause it will be worth every single penny.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite film
Review: A BETTER TOMORROW is indefinately my favorite film. Everything is superb, although the film is somewhat too melodramatic. Chow Yun Fat is at his best as super cool Mark Lee, and the directing is also superb. A must-see and highly recommended.
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