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3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Incredibly fierce action film by John Woo, 12 julio 2002
8/10
Author: Bogey Man de Finland

Heroes Shed no Tears was filmed in 1984/1985 but was released only when the huge success of his next film, A Better Tomorrow, was born. Heroes Shed no Tears is not as philosophical and personal as Bullet in the Head (Woo's most personal film to date, set in Vietnam war), but it is no less fierce. A group of mercenaries is sent to get one drug smuggler, kidnap him and deliver to court. They kidnap him, but get an angry league of the drug boss' men after them in the jungle and so the savage chase and fight for life has begun.

The usual elements of Woo are not as primary as in his more recent films, like A Better Tomorrow 1-2, The Killer and Bullet in the Head, but there are similar scenes and segments in this early film, too. Men get killed "with honor" and there are couple of "heroic bloodshed" scenes, too, like the human bomb, for instance. One important element not found too often in Woo's films is that there are many female characters in this film and they are depicted very warmly and lovingly, so Woo definitely can direct females, too, if he wants. The brief love making scene between male and female at one point is very emotional and erotic as the female is so full of love and emotion, and that really tells something about Woo's ability to direct his characters and give them charisma.

This film is pretty close to Japanese Babycart samurai films Lone Wolf & Cub from the 1970's. The main character in Heroes Shed no Tears has a son and their relationship is very similar to Ogami Itto's and his son Daigoro's, in Lone Wolf & Cub. I don't think this is any rip off of these Japanese films, but it is obvious that Woo had seen these Japanese films and found inspiration from them. After all, Lone Wolf & Cub films are pretty close to Woo's films in their content and philosophy.

The adrenaline amount in Heroes Shed no Tears is incredible as it is hard to think a film more fierce and angry than this. The action scenes are totally unbelievable and Ultra violent, and I was totally stunned at the fight scene near the water/lake/river at the first part of the film. The mayhem is so over-the-top and something never found in Western film. Fast paced action never lets up during the 80 minutes running time of the film. The camera use in these action scenes and other scenes as well is very professional and it is easy to see what kind of talent was hiding in Woo. This is very violent film and definitely wouldn't get the R rating in US. There are hyper bloody gun battles, head shots, stabbings, impalings, choppings and other acts of violence that truly are savage, but still pretty stylish and symbolic, as always in Woo's films. It tells something about his films' characters' values and moral, even though violence this brutal is not without its consequences in his subsequent films. Woo depicts violence, but that doesn't mean he glorifies it. Violence is always bad in Woo's films and that is left for viewer to interpret and there are no easy solutions in his films. So this kind of cinema would never come from some big studio in Hollywood, I think. This kind of cinema is too challenging for mainstream audience. Still, as I mentioned earlier, this is not as symbolic, deep and polished as Woo's subsequent films and also violence is not as symbolic as in his other films, but this was only the beginning and the director was still inventing his cinematic philosophy.

Heroes Shed no Tears is very great piece of Hong Kong mayhem cinema, and early work of John Woo. I was very surprised when I watched this since I didn't have any expectations even though I of course knew this was Woo's film. The film is little stupid at times (there are some scenes of usual "humor" often found in Hong Kong films), so I give this 8/10 rating, which I feel is the right for this film, but this is definitely not for the casual and mainstream viewer due to its extreme imagery and attitudes! It would get more stars from me if the film had more content and something more to think about, but still I love this early effort of this great director.

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7 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A Rhyming Review, 31 mayo 2004
Author: Samoan Bob de Menifee, California

There was a film that I saw

Just the other day

And I sat there in awe

As it blew me away.

It was made by John Woo

Who is now a sell out

His fans he does screw

As the cash they shell out.

So get a six-pack

Full of cold, frosty beers

And then sit back

For Heroes Shed No Tears

Watch with devotion

This huge action feast

With enough blood to fill an ocean

To say the frickin' least

Our heroes in this tale

Are a group of Mercs

Who blast folks all to hell

'Specially drug lord jerks

There's fighting, there's stabbing

There's nuking, there's looting

There's biting, there's grabbing

There's puking, there's shooting

Punches are thrown

Black soldiers are eaten

Eyeballs are sewn

Children are beaten

A fight goes on

With nails and a tire

Our hero loses his son

Almost in a fire

There's tons of dying

But where the film falters

Is all the damn crying

Like it was Barbara Walters

When our hero does cry

It gets really lame

For the movie does lie

With its very own name

But please do not fret

It does little harm

And I'll make you a bet

About the scene with the arm

If you do not jump

When the dude gets the spears

Shoved straight up his rump

You've drunk too much beers

And if you don't find it nice

When the hut does explode

After the role of a dice

Then you're a humorless toad

So get off your fat ass

And get the hell out of here

Cuz you'll have a damn blast

With Heroes Shed No Tears

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1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
90 minutes pure adrenalin!, 3 febrero 2002
Author: Le Froque

The 1980s were the decade when the Americans produced lots of patriotic action films like "Rambo 1-3" or "The Delta Force"-series, for example. Now, John Woo´s version of a mercenary-movie is quite different: of course, there are lots of heavy gunfights and giant explosions, however without being too one-dimensional as the US-movies are! The fast-paced plot is improved by well-developed characters, typical Asian humor and allusions to father and son, friendship and honour without being too pathetic in any way! Maybe not John Woo´s best, but still an action movie far above average!!

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1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Before Eastern Condors There Was Heroes Shed No Tears, 28 noviembre 2000
Author: marquis de cinema de Boston, MA

Ying Xiong Wei Lei/Heroes Shed No Tears(1986) was a pivotal feature in the early 80s for the director, John Woo. This was the first John Woo movie that included heavy use of gunplay. Although filmed in 1984/85, Heroes Shed No Tears(1986) did not get released until after the box office success of A Better Tomorrow(1986). Before this, Woo was mainly known for his comedies and Kung Fu flicks. Heroes Shed No Tears(1986) combines explosive action with some good martial arts.

Even if the film isn't as great or polish as John Woo's best, its still better then most of the ones that he has done in Hollywood. There are a few terrific set pieces within the movie. One, the opening gun battle with some drug runners. Two, the fight between the mercenaries and the Thai natives. Three, the martial arts fight between Eddy Ko and Ching Ying Lam.

It was one of the few war films besides Eastern Condors(1987) and Bullet in the Head(1990) to come out of Hong Kong. Ying Xiong Wei Lei(1986) is a precursor to John Woo's Bullet in the Head(1990). The plot of the film is very similar to Eastern Condors(1987) in that both films deal with mercenaries who are sent to Southeast Asia on a secret mission. Heroes Shed No Tears is the most grim and nihilistic of all John Woo movies(that includes Bullet in the Head). Its in the tradition of films like Aguirre:The Wrath of God(1974), The Deer Hunter(1978), and Apocalypse Now(1979).

Heroes Shed No Tears(1986) is a modern day retelling of the Lone Wolf & Cub comics. The relationship between Eddy Ko's soldier and his son has the same fatalistic bond that was present with Ogami Itto and his son, Daigoro. Its the closest thing that John Woo has ever come to doing a Lone Wolf & Cub feature. There is a scene that's right out of Lone Wolf & Cub(involves a child who covers himself in a mudhole in order to avoid being burned alive in a fire). The big influence for the one sequence is a similar sequence from Lone Wolf & Cub:Baby Cart in Peril(1973).

Ching Ying Lam is very convincing as the cruel and sadistic Vietnamese officer. The torture scene involving Eddy Ko is the most brutal one ever done by Woo. Heroes Shed No Tears(1986) has many traits that would become part of the Heroic Bloodshed genre in Hong Kong. Has its share of fogish atmosphere and stylish cinematography. The fight near the end of the movie would be done again in the terrible Mission:Impossible 2(2000)(there was also a exact scene in Strike of Death{1975}).

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Amongst all the bullets and explosions, there might be a movie, 4 junio 2005
8/10
Author: AwesomeWolf de Australia

Version: Cantonese audio, English subtitles (by SBS)

While watching the first scene of 'Heroes Shed No Tears':

Me: "Wow, I wonder how much the producers spent on explosions in that 5 minutes alone?"

My Friend: "Why is he carrying two machine guns?"

Me: "Why not?"

Later:

My friend: "Do you understand this?"

Me: "I understand machine-guns and explosions."

My friend: "I don't get it, but those cadavers fly a lot..."

Got the idea yet? I think 'Heroes Shed No Tears' was Woo's first film in the explosive style has since become famous for. I've seen some of his early kung-fu and comedy movies, but this is earliest Woo film I've seen where there were more explosions than words spoken in the movie. Awesome.

Chan Chung (Eddy Ko) leads a group of Chinese mercenaries in capturing a Thai drug-lord. Capturing him easily enough, the Chinese mercenaries find themselves on the run from angry drug-runners, a corrupt Thai army unit (whose officer is missing an eye thanks to Chung), and a group of native hunters hired by the Thai soldiers. Ohohoh, there'll be plenty of blood and explosions before this one is half over.

Essentially, 'Heroes Shed No Tears' is an old kung-fu film, replacing kung-fu with explosives and machine guns. There's a hell of a lot of people shooting and blowing stuff up, much like the old kung-fu films where there was a hell of a lot of kung-fu, and not much else. Most of the time that may have been used to develop the plot is used to blow stuff up, which I guess does kind of further the plot by allowing the characters to move to the next scene, blow something up, and then move to the scene after that. Most of the characters are cannon fodder, while Chung and his son play out the movie as if it were 'Lone Wolf with Cub', replacing swords with guns. Awesome

'Heroes Shed No Tears' is so mindlessly violent that even the most hardcore might get bored after a while, but it was so explosively compelling and awesome enough to entertain me. Woo fans should really check this out - 8/10

Awesome count: The word 'awesome' was used three times in this review.

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Truly mindless violence, 15 octubre 2003
7/10
Author: MikeA de Isle of Man, British Isles

Ludicrously violent war movie, notable only for being director John Woo's first foray into gung-ho gunplay that's since become his forte.

Every plot twist is improbable or just plain ridiculous, every character a hackneyed stereotype or just there for cannon fodder, and every line of poorly subbed dialogue unintentionally funny. In other words, I thought it was great.

Definitely worth taking a look at if you're in the mood for some truly mindless violence, or if you're a Woo completist.

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John Woo's "Man from Deep River", 12 octubre 2003
9/10
Author: Joseph P. Ulibas (sirjosephu@aol.com) de Sacramento, CA

John Woo's Heroes Shed no Tears (1986) is a sort of homage to the film Man From Deep River. This violent tale also plays tribute to the Lone Wolf and Cub series. Eddy Ko plays a soldier of fortune working for the US Government. Ko and his men are offered US citizenship along with several thousand dollars in cash for their services. All they have to do is take a Drug Lord into custody, that's the easy part. Taking him back to civilization, well that's another story. Ko, his team of mercenaries and child must endure a trip through hell that'll take them through the jungles, running a gauntlet of death.

Ching-Ying Lam co-stars as the Vietnamese Officer hellbent on taking Ko alive, no matter what the costs. HSNT is very bloody and dark. Unlike any of Woo's previous films.

Highly recommended for John Woo fans.

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A vision of things to come, 11 febrero 1999
10/10
Author: Azriel peskowitz (ozzie63@hotmail.com) de N.Y.C.

This movie is notable as being John Woo's first gun-fight movie. It is an extremely brutal and nihilistic war movie, at times more gut wrenching than BULLET IN THE HEAD. The movie centers around a small group of mercenaries who are sent to capture a drug lord in the golden triangle. The body count is massive and the action is unrelenting. Although it lacks the finesse of the director's later movies it has some brilliant scenes such as a swamp fist-fight against the manhunters, a torture scene straight out of a H.P. Lovecraft image, a hilarious gambling scene, and a sniper shot in the eye through the scope. This scene was imitated later for SNIPER and SAVING PRIVATE RYAN but is done best here. I would recommend this movie to all John Woo fans, especially those who liked BULLET IN THE HEAD, and Copolla's APOCALYPSE NOW.

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1 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Early sleaze flick by John Woo is a total blast!, 22 noviembre 2006
Author: Pete Tha GEEK! de Copenhagen, Denmark

It was with this movie, 'Heroes Shed No Tears', that John Woo for the first time created the wild, slo-mo shootings where the gunman flow through the air. Not very realistic but visual effective and exciting. It should later be the trademark of the director, so 'Heroes Shed No Tears' is not a whole unimportant sleaze flick. Let Me just get it straight right now, this is a hilarious trashy movie! I am sure that even without the awful dubbing this movie would be very hard to take serious by anyone! For a director who now directs big-budgeted Hollywood blockbusters this must be a true skeleton in the closet, but it is really entertaining. Basically there is nothing wrong with the plot. Eddy Ko makes a good bad-ass hero as the head of a Chinese mercenary unit that is on a mission in the Cambodian jungle to snatch a vicious drug-lord. They get him already in the opening where the good guys gun down most of his goons and blow up his hide out. But the real trouble is yet to begin. Before they get to the appointed pick-up at the other side of the jungle they have to save Eddy's wife and son, don't ask why had brought them along, and they get further trouble with a sadistic local border guard when they save a French girl. Obligatory breast shot included! And finally are their bust secretly leaving tracks for his boys to find him! It is like one long escape scene and the heroes are often attacked from every sides possible. The film also takes many unpredictable plot twists, like suddenly they encounter a whitey who lives in the middle of nowhere with his girlfriends and who show up to be an old pal from the Vietnam war! It is a total blast of pure mayhem that use every second of the short running time. There isn't really any boring moments to point out. The action includes great shootings with nasty bullet holes and gas explosions. But also very cruel torture and gore and exploitive flashing of female bodies. The sleaze is brilliantly handled, but what is the deal with adding the whackiest examples of slapstick too? The jokes are often misplaced and not always really funny. One guy is shot in the ass, another eat rotten meat and pukes and a there is a very strange out of place sequence that shows the dangers of gambling! I could have been without the slapstick, but then again, it also gives the film a crazy surreal touch. What we get is overall a wild, cool, brutal and entertaining action movie and one of the most enjoyable movie by John Woo.

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2 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
Very brutal war/action film from John Woo., 12 noviembre 2001
9/10
Author: HumanoidOfFlesh de Chyby,Poland

This film is amazing.It's loaded with extreme violence-thousands of bullets fly and the blood flows freely!Again the action scenes are breathtaking and the violence is truly brutal-stabbings,impalings and head explosions.One of the best John Woo's films he ever created.Check it out and enjoy the violence!

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