MM40 - Hong Kong Havoc feat. Jon Gabrus
Added 2025-06-11 11:00:09 +0000 UTCToday the Movie Mindset crew is joined by mindset practitioner Jon Gabrus to discuss two dizzyingly fun Crown Jewels in the Hong Kong action pantheon: Police Story and Hard Boiled.
Police Story, directed by and starring worldwide cinema legend Jackie Chan, explodes off the screen with some of the most insane and dangerous stunt work in film history, mixed with no shortage of incredible fight scenes and Jackie Chan’s signature goofball humor.
Hard-Boiled, perhaps John Woo’s stylistic masterpiece and his capstone on the Heroic Bloodshed genre, is a movie where 10,000 people get shot and Chow-Yun Fat plays the clarinet. A hospital explodes and everything catches on fire.
It’s difficult to talk about either of these movies without getting really excited and turning into a 12-year-old, but our intrepid hosts and their honored guest do their best!
Comments
Best Line for me- “Jackie’s is like a pocket UNc”. Hahahahaaa!
cashedtrapezoid
2025-06-28 19:53:29 +0000 UTCHoping there’s more ABZ X Movie Mindset crossovers in the future.
“Scoop”
2025-06-19 02:45:24 +0000 UTCWhere can you watch hard boiled?
Will
2025-06-17 22:38:49 +0000 UTCBullet in the Head deserves at the very least a mention, if not a deep dive
Mike Chang
2025-06-17 03:03:54 +0000 UTCEvery time Hesse brings up Dragons Forever I have to wonder if she's seen Wheels on Meals.
Big Cheesin'
2025-06-16 12:39:15 +0000 UTCPopped big for the ECW reference
Blown Load Steve Austin
2025-06-15 18:37:56 +0000 UTCIn the most positive way possible this was really enjoyable to listen to as it felt like a near perfect 1/3 each in terms of talking time for the hosts & guest. Very satisfying and engaging <3
Dec
2025-06-14 13:51:07 +0000 UTCWheels on Meals is great as well. Pretty much any Jackie Chan and sammo hung movie is fun
Brian
2025-06-14 07:51:13 +0000 UTCThis case was so crazy. Between the Monster with 21 Faces and the Fox-Eyed Man, it sounds like an early 90s action thriller
Chapo Bath House
2025-06-14 05:23:48 +0000 UTCI shared a student flat with two Hong Kong Chinese guys in 1992. They brought their VHS collection to Dundee Scotland. I watched a lot of HK action movies with no subtitles. Police Squad and Armour of the God's were highlights.
Justin Kase
2025-06-13 23:04:18 +0000 UTCI would listen to a whole series that was just people talking about Hard Target
Chapo Bath House
2025-06-13 19:33:18 +0000 UTChave been really looking forward to this one, Jackie and Chow were basically tied in my head for the coolest guy alive when I was about 13
Declan Kennedy
2025-06-13 01:55:22 +0000 UTCBless you Dongo for sharing this tale like a bard of old 🙏
Swimaroo
2025-06-12 23:29:39 +0000 UTCIf you like the insane gore and bonkers story beats of Riki-oh, check out The Boxer's Omen and (more recently) The Night Comes for Us.
Kyle Cassidy
2025-06-12 22:36:30 +0000 UTCThis was a fun one
Peen Israel
2025-06-12 22:02:49 +0000 UTCPolice Story is so much fun, HK movies rip. Check out Riki-Oh the Story of Riki and Kung Pow: Enter the Fist they both deserve a criterion release
MCL
2025-06-12 18:37:50 +0000 UTCIdk how common knowledge this is but I went to a double feature screening of Hard Boiled and Face Off and John Woo was there to answer questions. He said that during the scene where Chow Yun Fat was running from the explosions in the hospital they started exploding the bombs a few seconds before he was expecting to make him run faster and his hair got singed and he was pissed off lol. Also apparently they used only real glass during the movie, no fake glass at all, and Chow Yun Fat got a shard lodged in his eye and went blind for a bit. He apparently was freaking out and hated John Woo for a while but he got his sight back eventually and “got over it” lol Edited because my memory is bad. Here’s a vid from the Q&A: https://youtu.be/cNxHVQKww7g?si=k-pyobxHmnSgcSva
Dongo
2025-06-12 18:24:29 +0000 UTCHard Boiled rips for sure, but I have a soft spot for A Better Tomorrow II just for that final scene where like 5 dudes walk into a mansion with like 200 dudes and nearly everyone dies (plus Chow Yun Fat playing his own twin with that whole American accent deal). There used to be a sick fanmade video on YouTube of the final scene set to “Death Ripper” by Municipal Waste
Alex “WORLDWIDE” Kellar
2025-06-12 16:15:00 +0000 UTCWho knew Stav was into movies?
Ernest Ambrus
2025-06-12 15:15:53 +0000 UTCSurprised of no max Payne mention which made me watch hardboiled once I knew the inspiration. I seem to recall Mad Dog is the no 2 villain in the Time Crisis games, the intro playing over and over as I sat in a DC bus station at 2 am.
Robert Moreau
2025-06-12 14:53:03 +0000 UTCA Better Tomorrow is in my top 5 :)
🫶🏽
2025-06-12 13:51:56 +0000 UTCI would also recommend Wolf Guy: Enraged Lycanthrope (1975) 😌
🫶🏽
2025-06-12 13:50:08 +0000 UTCI set that song as my alarm clock for a six month period and I awoke each day with boundless energy.
Jared Sarnie
2025-06-12 04:08:27 +0000 UTCHard Boiled is my favorite film of all time, as well. It’s literally perfect. Nothing tops it. Can’t wait to show my kids this movie. Show them how it’s done. My only is just one, but imma blow his mind when he’s 10.
Eater
2025-06-12 01:15:01 +0000 UTCGabrus going “That’s so cool” was very cute 🥰
Panik
2025-06-11 23:18:14 +0000 UTCThug life🥷
Dark Alliance
2025-06-11 23:11:34 +0000 UTCwhen OJ pretended to stab that reporter, he was just doing a Jackie Chan bit
bruce
2025-06-11 22:22:37 +0000 UTCI believe the Barry Wong idea of a Japanese terrorist poisoning baby food comes from a big news story in 1984 about a mysterious group putting poisoned snacks in Japanese 7/11’s. Look up the Glico-Morinaga incident for more info.
Everett
2025-06-11 21:16:25 +0000 UTCI recall that span of time on Cumtown where they discovered Jackie Chan’s song “Okay, I love you” Nick would cut Adam off all the time playing it randomly lol
Cullen S
2025-06-11 21:14:52 +0000 UTCAin’t this Flugson from the New York College Humor office who couldn’t read?
Edward D Heap
2025-06-11 21:03:06 +0000 UTCJon added a very nice balance to the show. Thanks for having him on. Please do more fun action movies!
ERIC
2025-06-11 20:41:45 +0000 UTC33:41 nasty
Benjamin Fung
2025-06-11 19:57:13 +0000 UTCHard Boiled is certainly great but I love A Better Tomorrow more. My personal favorite
Throw Away
2025-06-11 19:22:30 +0000 UTCGreat ep! Hard Boiled is great but The Killer will always be my favorite Woo
balbert
2025-06-11 19:21:32 +0000 UTCI read once that up to 1/3 of the HK police force was triad in the 70s-90s
Daniel Dermont
2025-06-11 18:09:17 +0000 UTC“my favorite trope ever happens”
Erik Aldrich
2025-06-11 17:41:18 +0000 UTCIs there a better way to watch Hard Boiled than the YouTube upload?
Sam
2025-06-11 17:39:57 +0000 UTCDos pistolas
Cody S
2025-06-11 17:28:02 +0000 UTCmeth mouth?
NYCM&AHole
2025-06-11 17:26:25 +0000 UTCFinally. Been waiting for this episode
Eater
2025-06-11 17:23:22 +0000 UTCHell, the "sequel" to Hard Boiled was the PS3 game Stranglehold, it was pretty destructible.
Yairo Martis
2025-06-11 16:55:47 +0000 UTCsomeone should go back to season 1 and record every superlative used by will and hesse each episode. “greatest ending sequence in a movie ever.” “most evil villain ever in a movie.” “in the running for my favorite movie of all time.” none of these are true stfu, you’re just podding
Erik Aldrich
2025-06-11 16:54:05 +0000 UTCThe car chase through the crowded village in police story is pure bliss
Joelio
2025-06-11 16:18:05 +0000 UTCI know they touched on Drunken Master briefly but I love how obvious the differences in the eras they came out in are between the two. And how Chan was able to make that transition from the typical king fu training arc to the bum rush of 300 guys coming at the protag.
UNDED
2025-06-11 16:14:31 +0000 UTCFinally a MM episode that I can listen to
jay
2025-06-11 15:46:19 +0000 UTCI watched A Police Story with my roommate and we were hooting and hollering at the screen the entire run time. We also were super jealous of the witness lady's bathroom, too. Damn, what a nice bathroom! Soundtrack to Hard Boiled slaps. The motorcycle ride out to the garage raid was aesthetic af
Anomalie
2025-06-11 15:18:45 +0000 UTCRed Faction had destructible environments and it was an aughts era game. It was amazing. Ask Felix.
NYCM&AHole
2025-06-11 15:02:40 +0000 UTCPolice Story 2 is better in my humble opinion and that is saying something because PS1 is incredible
Fernslinger
2025-06-11 14:50:52 +0000 UTCEveryone thinks Werner Herzog is a transgressive genius because he cuts down a few ancient trees in the amazon while making Fitzcaraldo, meanwhile Jackie Chan is out here destroying whole shantytowns!
Fernslinger
2025-06-11 14:49:30 +0000 UTCAsian uncle magic episode
Reed
2025-06-11 14:33:06 +0000 UTCSo fucking true
Joey Fazzoli
2025-06-11 14:13:06 +0000 UTCPolice Story is one of those movies that will have you laughing with delight throughout the runtime. It's kind of a perfect movie
Tim O'
2025-06-11 14:12:35 +0000 UTCFive Elements Ninjas is so fucking cool. A guy gets cut in half with a kick
Garth Hillsborough
2025-06-11 14:12:03 +0000 UTCI misread the description and thought it said King Kong and Hard Boiled and was like damn they really got sucked up into talking about Police Story in detail
Robert Peterson
2025-06-11 14:08:56 +0000 UTCGreat point about the geography of action scenes by Hesse. If squibs are exhibit A for "they forgot how to make these movies" then knowing where the hell everyone is and how the specifics of the immediate environment affect the action is exhibit B.Hey, let's have our climactic action scene in a fucking parking lot!
THEKILLERWHALE
2025-06-11 13:57:53 +0000 UTCPolice Story is the best film in the Criterion collection.
Yarblockos
2025-06-11 13:34:39 +0000 UTCJust watched Rumble in the Bronx, equally amazing stunts as Police Story and also starring Bill Tung!
Asher
2025-06-11 13:11:17 +0000 UTCI genuinely like southland tales
k v
2025-06-11 12:57:59 +0000 UTCGabrus x Chapo !!!!
PJ
2025-06-11 12:51:20 +0000 UTCPolice Story's opening was so good Michael Bay caped it shot for shot for the ending of Bad Boys 2
G
2025-06-11 12:48:55 +0000 UTCGet your tar-filled cigarettes ready, folks. It's Tequila time.
Walking Bones
2025-06-11 12:24:41 +0000 UTCI work as a prop/spfx person and have always gave mad respect to the Hard Boiled crew for the amount of squibs they made for this amazing action movie.
Paul larkin
2025-06-11 12:15:37 +0000 UTCIf your metric for evaluating cinema is "How much did I enjoy myself watching this", these are easily all time top 10 films sandwiched between Big Trouble Little China and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
THEKILLERWHALE
2025-06-11 11:53:30 +0000 UTCMindset? Movies! Dudes? Rocking! Go? LETS!
Eamon Short
2025-06-11 11:42:15 +0000 UTCBumping the Police Story theme at the gym is one of life’s purest pleasures.
Chase Padusniak
2025-06-11 11:28:44 +0000 UTCOK, I love you!
T
2025-06-11 11:08:42 +0000 UTCGabrus!
Kyle
2025-06-11 11:04:26 +0000 UTCFirst
Bennett Fagan
2025-06-11 11:03:44 +0000 UTC
