Heroic bloodshed

Heroic Bloodshed, or Hong Kong Blood Opera (HKBO), refers to a genre of action film originating from Hong Kong revolving around stylised action sequences and common themes such as brotherhood, honour, violence, and also prevalent themes are the redemption or salvation of the protagonist. The term heroic bloodshed was coined by UK fanzine editor Rick Baker in the later 1980s, specifically referring to the styles of directors John Woo and Ringo Lam. Woo's film The Killer is titled in Chinese Bloodshed of Two Heroes.

Filmography

Chinese

• A Better Tomorrow (Ying xiong ben se) (1986)
• A Better Tomorrow II (Ying xiong ben se II) (1987)
• City on Fire (Long hu feng yun) (1987)
• The Killer (Die xue shuang xiong) (1989)
• Once a Thief (Zong sheng si hai) (1991)
• Hard Boiled (Lashou shentan) (1992)
• Fulltime Killer

American

• The Replacement Killers
• Face/Off