Review of Hard-Boiled (1992)
Police work, revenge, double identities, smugglers, mob war, hostages, failed romance, friendship, heroism, synthesizers, guns and sax.
Hyperbolical action. Sky-high kill count and action total, with enough story to keep it interesting. It’s less believable than Die Hard (1988), but sometimes more humane, featuring heroes accidentally hitting allies in major battles and sacrificing their pride. The script stays away from some major pitfalls—so a hero dies and the love interest is unresolved—while it bangs its head right into others. If you think mainstream American films are overly concerned with unrealistic threats to children as a common denominator you’ll be laughing through the final battle royal.
References here: Magnum Force (1973), Black Lagoon (2006), Django Unchained (2012), John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017).