John Woo

John Woo ({{zh-cp|c=吳宇森|p=Wú Yǔsēn}}) (born May 1, 1946 in Guangzhou, China) is a Chinese film director known especially for the ballet-like violence in his movies.

Trivia

• One of Woo's trademarks is doves. He was quoted in the June 2000 edition of Premiere magazine:

:"I love doves. I am a Christian. Doves represent the purity of love, beauty. They're spiritual. Also the dove is a messenger between people and God... When I shot The Killer, these two men, the killer and the cop, they work in different ways, but their souls are pure, because they do the right thing. In the church scene, I wanted to bring them together. I wanted to use a metaphor of the heart. I came up with doves —they're white. When the men die, I cut to the dove flying —it's the soul, rescued and safe and also pure of heart. So the dove became one of my habits: I used it in Hard Boiled, Face/Off, and in Mission: Impossible II".

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• In the anime series, R.O.D the TV which features three girls named after real life Hong Kong action stars, 'John Woo' is the name of a mysterious carrier pigeon.
• Quentin Tarantino has been quoted in reply to a studio executive who said "I suppose Woo can direct action scenes" as saying "Sure, and Michelangelo can paint ceilings!"
• When Jean-Claude Van Damme was trying to get Woo for Hard Target he described him as "the Martin Scorsese of Asia".
• In another anime series, FLCL, two characters can be seen watching the climactic end sequence of an action movie. Although the screen in not visible, it can be surmised that it is indeed a John Woo film, as one of the film's characters exclaims, "What are all these pigeons doing in here?" and a multitude of flapping wings heard. The screen was then broken, and a flock of white doves flew out of the TV set.
• A Mexican standoff is a common situation in his movies.
• At some point the main characters see and talk to each other using mirrors.
• Japanese professional wrestler SUWA, of the promotions Dragon's Gate and Pro Wrestling NOAH, utilizes a seated dropkick that frequently sends its victim flying back-first into the corner. As a fan of Hong Kong action cinema, he calls this move the "John Woo", as an homage to the impact of shotgun blasts on the human body in Woo's films.