While the often overwhelming violence of his films is not for everyone, John Woo remains a consistent innovator in the otherwise stale genre of action movies. His American-made offerings (Face/Off, Broken Arrow) are tame in comparison to his Hong Kong masterpieces, which often elevate kinetic sequences of carnage and mayhem to something similar to ballet. Check out Hard Boiled and The Killer to see the best that this artist has to offer.

Chris Hodgdon