JOHN WOO BIOGRAPHY

JOHN WOO
Real name: Wu Yu-sen
Cantonese name: Ng Yu-sum
Date of Birth (location): 1946, Guangzhou (=Canton) Guangdong Province, China (Mainland)

Martial artis master 1969-1976

 He began his movie career in 1969 at Cathay Studio as Production assistant and script supervisor. In 1971 he moved to Shaw Brothers, where he worked as an assistant director for veteran director Chang Cheh, when they made few martial arts movies. WOO: Chang Cheh was the pioneer of the modern Hong Kong films, he was the first one to use men for leading parts in the movies! Earlier on, it was just women who played all the major parts. He (Chang Cheh) was the master of swordsplay 'martial chivalry' epics (wuxia pian films), whose stoic, natilly-attired swordman heroes in such films as 1968's Golden Swallow may be seen as forerunners of the noble outlaws played by Chow Yun Fat in A Better Tomorrow and Killer. Woo readily acknowledges the strong influence of his former boss, whom he describes as Hong Kong's own Sam Peckinpah, "...not so much in Chang Cheh's way of portraying violence, but in his unrestrained way of writing emotions and chivalry. Chinese cinema has always been too low key. We should be more expressive, put more of ourselves into our films" (as he explained at the Hong Kong Film Festival premiere of "A Better Tomorrow")

Legendary studio chief Sir Run Run Shaw,once defined the parameters of his artistic aspirations by noting that "the cinema offers air-conditioned darkness", adding that his best films were "the ones that made most money". Chang Cher. Woo quickly realized that to get ahead, he would have to play by the system's rules.

Just two year later he made his directorial debut -at very young age (He was 26 yrs.)- with The Young Dragons.
WOO: "The Young Dragons; around this time, most of the directors making their first films were in their forties. Because, in this system, you would have to start at the bottom, after 10, 15, maybe 20 years as an assistan director, then, you became a director. And the film people, they all really looked down on intellectual. They thought if you were an intellectual, you were not good for making films. So when I became a director - because I was young and an intellectual - the people at the studiogave me a really hard time."

The Young Dragons was banned in Hong Kong for it´s extreme violence and therefore shelved for 2 years before being recut, rescored and released by Golden Harvest.
At that time, early seventies, sensors were very tough in Hong Kong. They claimed Woo dangerous because he gave the bad guys in the film weapons. That was something what was done never before. Sencors were afraid that young people would learn about it. But after all people (Raymond Chow) at Golden Harvest liked The Young Dragons, so Woo was signed for three years. Also he re-shoot some action scenes of YD that it could pass sensors.

One of Woo's first assignments at Golden Harvest working as 'associate director' with the popular TV comedian Michael Hui, to help him get his sea legs on his first three films as a writer director. Games Gamblers Play, Private Eyes, Contract. Woo has remained friendly with Michael Hui and went on to make several successful comedies with the director's talented sad sack brother, Ricky Hui.

After that he made two more successful martial arts pictures followed, The Dragon Tamers (1974) starring Ji Han Jae (the Hapkido-stylist from Bruce Lee's Game Of Death and The Hand of Death (1975), the latter featuring action superstar Jackie Chan in his first major screen role, with Samo Hung and James Tien. In Hand of Death John Woo appears as an actor as well. Also Yuen Biao can be seen for a very short moment.

After the martial arts films he made something competely different: a Cantonese opera film, Princess Chang Ping (1975), which was quite a good succees as well. It was a faithful remake of Tradegy of the Emperors Daughter, directed by Tso Kein in 1959. This movie is Woo's favourite of his very early works.

 

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