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Die xue jie tou
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Die xue jie tou (1990) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.6/10   4,345 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
John Woo
Writers:
Janet Chun (writer)
Patrick Leung (writer)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Bullet in the Head on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
17 August 1990 (Hong Kong) more
Plot:
In 1967, on the way to the wedding of a friend a young man is accosted by a local gang member. Later... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
1 win & 3 nominations more
NewsDesk:
Blood Brothers R2 DVD: Review
 (From 24FramesPerSecond. 8 April 2009, 1:16 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
The greatest HK movie ever made more

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Tony Leung Chiu Wai ... Ben / Ah Bee
Jacky Cheung ... Frank / Fai
Waise Lee ... Paul / Little Wing

Simon Yam ... Luke
Fennie Yuen ... Jane
Yolinda Yam ... Sally Yen
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yue Ding
Shek Yin Lau ... Fatso
Chung Lin ... Y.S. Leong
Hee Ching Paw ... Ben's mother
Hang Shuen So ... Jane's mother

Chang Tseng ... Paul's father

John Woo ... Police inspector
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Bullet in the Head (Hong Kong: English title) (USA)
Bloodshed in the Streets (Hong Kong: English title) (literal title)
Dip huet gaai tau (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
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Runtime:
136 min | Australia:126 min | New Zealand:125 min | Germany:97 min (video version) (heavily cut)
Country:
Hong Kong
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono
Filming Locations:
Hong Kong, China more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Woo reluctantly re-cut Bullet in the Head from about 3 hours to about 2 hours. Secretly, he had hoped that as soon as he got to Hollywood, he would acquire the rights to his old films (including Bullet) and put back in all the things that he was once forced to cut. But when he tried to do so, he was told that all the material he had cut, hadn't been preserved, but instead wandered straight into the garbage bin. more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: When the action moves to Vietnam the movie posters ('Dien Bien Phu', etc.) shown are films that came out well after the Vietnam war was over. more
Quotes:
Ben: Mr Leong. I think think you're mistaken. When we were in Hong Kong we admired Miss Yen. We like listening to her sing. We were all staring at her just now, as we were wondering... wondering why she had changed so much. She's not pretty any more.
Paul: Ah Bee!
Ben: She's lost her innocence. She's not happy any more. I wonder who was responsible for that?
Y.S. Leong: You're criticizing me? Not many people would speak to me like that. Young man, you've got balls. Bring me wine!
more
Movie Connections:
References I Call First (1967) more
Soundtrack:
I'm a Believer more

FAQ

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19 out of 24 people found the following comment useful:-
The greatest HK movie ever made, 17 January 2005
10/10
Author: Libretio

BULLET IN THE HEAD (Die Xie Jie Tou)

Aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Sound format: Mono

Fleeing from a murder rap during the political turmoil of 1960's Hong Kong, three devoted friends (Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Jacky Cheung and Waise Lee) seek their fortunes in war-torn Vietnam and are ripped apart by greed and betrayal.

John Woo's ambitious movie - an operatic valentine to his youth in HK and his love of David Lean epics, and a response to the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 - went over-schedule and flopped at the local box-office when released in 1990, but has since been recognized as one of the finest productions in HK film history. Newcomers Leung, Cheung and Lee are terrific as the three friends whose lives are devastated by the violence they encounter in a foreign land, and they're matched throughout by Simon Yam as the Eurasian hit-man who rescues them from the worst of their experiences. For all its explosions and gun play, however, BULLET IN THE HEAD is a very human drama, played out against the vast backdrop of the Vietnam conflict, and invested with a palpable sense of love and compassion for its leading characters. Cinematography and editing are world-class, and Woo's dark-hearted script (co-written by Patrick Leung and Janet Chin) incorporates the themes of loyalty and brotherhood which have shaped and defined all of his films since A BETTER TOMORROW (1986). Cheung's final scene is absolutely heartbreaking; classic score by James Wong and Romeo Diaz.

(Cantonese dialogue)

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