IMDb > A Better Tomorrow II (1987)
Ying hung boon sik II
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A Better Tomorrow II (1987) More at IMDbPro »Ying hung boon sik II (original title)

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Overview

User Rating:
7.2/10   5,205 votes »
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MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 7% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
John Woo
Writers:
John Woo
Hark Tsui (story)
Contact:
View company contact information for A Better Tomorrow II on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
17 December 1987 (Hong Kong) See more »
Genre:
Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller See more »
Plot:
A restauranteur teams up with a police officer and his ex-con brother to avenge the death of a friend's daughter. Full summary » | Add synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
See more »
Awards:
2 nominations See more »
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
New this Week: ‘Tron: Legacy,’ ‘The Fighter’ and ‘Hard Boiled (Bd)’
 (From Scorecard Review. 15 December 2010, 7:00 AM, PST)
A Better Tomorrow II
 (From LateFilmFull. 15 June 2009, 2:19 AM, PDT)
Dead Alive: Bringing Popular Characters Back to Life in Sequels
 (From IFC. 16 April 2009, 7:59 AM, PDT)
User Reviews:
A Far From Perfect But Satisfying Conclusion To The Original See more (52 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order)
Dean Shek ... Lung Si
Lung Ti ... Sung Tse-Ho (also archive footage) (as Ti Lung)
Leslie Cheung ... Sung Tse-Kit (also archive footage)

Yun-Fat Chow ... Ken / Mark Lee / Mark 'Gor' (also archive footage) (as Chow Yun Fat)
Emily Chu ... Jackie Sung
Fui-On Shing ... Ko's Right-Hand Man

Kenneth Tsang ... Ken
Regina Kent ... Peggy Lung
Sing Chau Wai
Marco Wo
Ken Boyle ... Bearded Crime Boss
Ming Yan Lung ... Chong
Sammy Lee
Chindy Lau
Shan Kwan ... Ko Ying Pui
Paul Francis
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mike Abbott
Dean Harrington ... Hitman in the hallway
Mark King ... Shotgun Pete
Siu-Ming Lau ... Inspector Wu
Waise Lee ... Shing (archive footage)
Ming Leung
Man Tat Ng ... Mr. Wong
Peter Wang ... Sam

Charles Dumas ... New York Cop (uncredited)
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Directed by
John Woo 
 
Writing credits
(in alphabetical order)
Hark Tsui  story
John Woo 

Produced by
Paul J.Q. Lee .... associate producer
Hark Tsui .... producer
 
Original Music by
Joseph Koo 
Lowell Lo 
 
Cinematography by
Wing-hang Wong 
 
Film Editing by
David Wu 
 
Production Design by
Andy Lee 
Chi Fung Lok 
 
Costume Design by
Pauline Lau 
Nancy Tong 
 
Makeup Department
Billy Chan .... makeup artist
Bones Chan .... makeup artist
Nancy Tong .... hair stylist
 
Production Management
Kuo-chung Chou .... post-production manager (as Tony Chow)
Fung-jun Fung .... assistant production manager
Kin-cheong Jue .... assistant production manager
Wai-Lun Lam .... assistant production manager
Ting-Kit Lo .... assistant production manager
Kar-Man Won .... production manager
Ting-cho Wong .... assistant production manager
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Randy Ostrow .... assistant director: New York
 
Special Effects by
Matt Vogel .... pyrotechnician
 
Stunts
Siu-Tung Ching .... stunt coordinator
Phil Neilson .... stunt coordinator
Phil Neilson .... stunt performer
Peter Rocca .... stunts
Chi-Lung Wu .... assistant stunt coordinator
Tak Yuen .... assistant stunt coordinator
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Jonathan Burkhart .... assistant camera
Kim-Kit Chik .... lighting technician
Jules Labarthe .... director of photography: second unit
Ho-Wing Lee .... assistant camera
Clay Liversidge .... gaffer: New York
 
Editorial Department
Simon Broderick .... colorist
 
Music Department
Leslie Cheung .... playback singer
Joseph Koo .... composer: theme music
James Wong .... lyricist
David Wu .... music editor
 
Other crew
George Camarda .... location manager
Siu-Tung Ching .... action choreographer
Siu-Tung Ching .... action director
Hark Tsui .... presenter
 

Production CompaniesDistributorsSpecial EffectsOther Companies
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
"Ying hung boon sik II" - Hong Kong (original title)
"Better Tomorrow: Rapid Fire II" - Philippines (English title)
See more »
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parents
Runtime:
105 min
Country:
Hong Kong
Language:
Mandarin | Cantonese | English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
Mono
Certification:
Argentina:16 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Hong Kong:IIB | New Zealand:R18 | Singapore:M18 | Singapore:NC-16 (cut) | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:18 | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | USA:R | Japan:R-15 | Ireland:18 | Canada:R (Ontario) | Malaysia:18PL | France:-12 | South Korea:15 (2008) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) (re-rating)
Filming Locations:
199 N Henry Street, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USASee more »
Company:
Film WorkshopSee more »

Did You Know?

Trivia:
Director Trademark: ['John Woo'] [slow motion]See more »
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: During one of the action scenes at Ken's house you can clearly see that the sparks that are supposed to show the effects of bullets hitting a wall, are actually coming out of a pipe attached to the wall.See more »
Quotes:
Ken:There's no such thing as can't. You always have a choice.See more »
Movie Connections:
References Ying hung ho hon (1987)See more »
Soundtrack:
The Set-UpSee more »

FAQ

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User Reviews

   (Review this title)
2 out of 2 people found the following review useful.
A Far From Perfect But Satisfying Conclusion To The Original, 7 October 2010
Author: MovieMaster95 from England

After the movie 'A Better Tomorrow' became a big success around Hong Kong, a sequel was inevitable to happen. Most of the original cast return, including Chow Yun-Fat as Mark Lee's twin brother Ken.

Taking place a few years after the events of the first film, we see how things are finally starting to look up. Ho is in prison but he's finally re concealed his relationship with his brother Kit, who has become a loving husband and soon to be father. But like the first film, things get bad real quick. Ho's former master Lung has been framed for murder and even loses his mind as his life gets worse. He's sent over to New York to keep a low profile and to be looked after by Ken who owns a restaurant and lives there. Meanwhile Ho and Kit are working together to end the triad gangs.

This is where the problem starts. The first film revolved around Ho and the people around him, but this film spends way too much time with Ken trying to get Lung back to normal. Ho and Kit's plot seems to delve deeper into the main story ark, yet they never seem to get enough scenes. Ken is pretty much similar to Mark although he may be a little darker and you can tell he's only in the film because of Chow Yun-Fat's character was so popular in the last film.

The film doesn't seem to make a huge continuation onto the first film either. Instead of being it's own story, it seems to just be an expansion of the first film, but not in a good way. We don't delve too much into the characters and they seem underused. The film is also known for having a sillier feel in a few scenes(Famous Rice Scene), but it didn't ruin the experience for me. These flaws are apparently due to disagreement between John Woo and producer/second writer Tsui Hark about the tone of the film, causing Woo to disown most of the film, except the end shootout. John Woo's original cut was around 3 hours and is rumoured to improve on some of the flawed moments. A version I hope will appear in some future release of the film.

Now for the goods. The film seems to get noticeable better during the second half, beginning with the amazing hotel shootout. The film is well known for it's exaggerated violence and blood and the film doesn't disappoint. The action is a big step up from the first and some of the best ever filmed for its time. Chow Yun-Fat is once again cooler than ice, with his trademark sunglasses, trench coat, matchstick and dual pistols and may be one of the main appeals of the film. The Climatic assault on the triad mansion is one of the greatest shootouts and one of the greatest ending ever filmed. It's no wonder that it's the only thing Woo likes about the film. The amazing soundtrack returns and their are a few emotional scenes that actually work well.

With many iconic scenes (The stairs scene being one), the film is a lot better than it gets credit for. The film is no masterpiece and doesn't compare to the first but it has its moments. Silly and flawed moments aside the film is actually quite enjoyable and as long as you keep an open mind, I think you'll enjoy this conclusion to the Better Tomorrow saga. Part 3 doesn't count!

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for A Better Tomorrow II (1987)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Looking for a Music Cue... Colonel-T
Awkward homoerotic orange feeding scenes Redfoot84
Ye Gods this movie is terrible! Angry_Arguer
ABT II - three hour version oliverxia
Best shootout in the history of cinema? bobfred1288
The professional killer NightHasCome
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