Classic Hong Kong cinema: John Woo on action, violence, influences, growing up in poverty and working in Hollywood in 1997 interview
- John Woo impressed Hollywood with his action films and relocated there, making three US films before returning to Hong Kong
- In this interview from 1997, Woo describes his upbringing, how he likes to direct his films and the difficulties of working in Hollywood
In this new regular feature series on the best of Hong Kong cinema, we examine the legacy of classic films, re-evaluate the careers of its greatest stars, and revisit some of the lesser-known aspects of the beloved industry. We begin this week with a wide-ranging interview with John Woo during the peak of his Hollywood career.
The legendary John Woo Yu-sum was the first Hong Kong director to be hired by a Hollywood studio. US studios were impressed with the action choreography of classic local films like The Killer, and Woo relocated to Los Angeles and debuted there with Hard Target in 1992.
Woo’s relationship with Hollywood was difficult as the studios imposed too many limitations on his work process, and he felt that he could not make his films the way he wanted to.
The director gave this writer the following interview in Hong Kong in 1997, while he was readying himself for the release of his third US film, Face/Off.
How do you plan an action scene?
I never use a storyboard. I keep it all in my head, all in my mind. I actually create a lot of the action sequences when I am on the set. To get the ideas for them, I usually base them on what is happening in the story, and the locations. I’m very sensitive to any kind of movement that’s happening on location. If I see anything that I can incorporate into the action, I generally use it.