Disc Reviews
The Killer 4K Review
The Killer 4k Review
Chow Yun Fat leads as a worn-down Hitman named Ah-Jong, who decides to hang it all up after a last job. During said job, he accidentally blinds a nightclub singer named Jennie. Guilt-ridden, he then aspires to become her guardian angel, watching over her and eventually intervening when she gets into trouble.
The two form a bond and begin a relationship. But life starts to get complicated again, and he is forced to pick up his guns and gets embroiled with other gangsters and the police and round and round they go chasing each other’s tails.
The Killer is well known as one of John Woo’s most well-made films in China before he made the leap to the States. And the evidence is clear. All the ingredients are here from the balletic action to the slow motion to explosive shells to people diving out of the way of it all. The film even got an English-language remake of sorts in 2024 from Woo himself. That film changed an awful lot, so go in prepared for that one.
This version was the continuation of the winning team that Woo made with Chow Yun Fat after the two very good A Better Tomorrow movies made previously to this.
Regarding the 4K version here from Arrow Video, much like the Hard Boiled release previously, The Killer was in serious need of an upgrade in the visual and sound department, and they have delivered that. There are language options available and even four audio commentaries, two archival (including John Woo), a new one with Woo, and a new one with critic David West.
Disc two was not available for review, but if you look at the list below, you can see it is absolutely jam-packed with extra material, including new interviews with key players and a feature-length documentary on John Woo himself.
Steven Hurst
4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
• Reversible sleeve and double-sided foldout poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tony Stella
• Six postcard-sized reproduction artcards
• Collectors’ perfect-bound booklet featuring new writing on the film by critics Priscilla Page and Frank Djeng, archival writing by critic Rafik Djoumi and an excerpt from an interview with John Woo conducted by Stéphane Moïssakis
DISC ONE – FEATURE AND EXTRAS (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
• 4K Ultra HD (2160p) Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Original lossless Cantonese mono and Dolby Atmos audio, and lossless English mono audio
• Optional newly translated English subtitles for the Cantonese audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English audio
• Brand new commentary by director John Woo and film journalist Drew Taylor
• Brand new commentary by critic David West
• Two archival commentaries by John Woo, one with producer Terence Chang
• Deleted and extended scenes
• Theatrical trailers
• Image gallery
DISC TWO – EXTRAS (BLU-RAY)
• The Hero of Heroic Bloodshed, a brand new feature-length documentary on John Woo’s career
• A Bullet Ballet, a brand new interview with director John Woo
• My Kind of Hero, a brand new interview with producer Terence Chang
• Editing The Killer, a brand new interview with editor David Wu
• Hong Kong Confidential, a new appreciation by author Grady Hendrix
• American Cinematheque 2025 introduction with Woo
• Archival interviews with cinematographer Peter Pau and actors Sally Yeh and Kenneth Tsang
• Four archival featurettes from 2001 with Woo and producer Tsui Hark
DISC THREE – EXTENDED CUT (BLU-RAY)
• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation of the 130-minute Taiwan Extended Cut with lossless Mandarin mono audio and optional English subtitles (contains standard-definition inserts)
• Option to view the Extended Cut with additional scenes from the Taiwan VHS release
• Unrestored print of the Extended Cut (standard-definition with burnt-in subtitles only)
The Killer is out on 4K Blu-Ray April 20th