Release
The Killer was first released in Taiwan in March 1989 with a running time of 124 minutes. It was then cut to its current running time of 110 minutes and released in Hong Kong during July 1989, Woo felt this cut was "much better". The film was not an immediate success in Hong Kong due to the Tiananmen Square massacre but eventually gained fame, grossing $18,255,083 and reached ninth at the 1989 Hong Kong box office. At the 9th Hong Kong Film Awards, the film won for Best Director (John Woo) and Best Editing (Fan Kung Ming) and was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Paul Chu Kong), Best Screenplay (Woo) and Best Cinematography (Wong Wing Hang and Peter Pau). The Killer was popular in Korea taking seventh highest place in the year end box office receipts.
The Killer was shown at several film festivals outside Asia including the 1989 Toronto Film Festival and, during the film's United States premiere, at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in January 1990. It was also shown at the Sundance Film Festival in the United States and the Cannes Film Festival in France in 1990. Film producer Terence Chang suggested that The Killer's success around the world made several Hong Kong filmmakers jealous: "It created a certain kind of resentment in the Hong Kong film industry. One thing I can say for sure is, the American, European, Japanese, Korean and even the Taiwanese audiences and critics appreciated The Killer a lot more than it was in Hong Kong." The Killer received a wide release in the United Kingdom on October 8, 1993.
Read more about this topic: The Killer (1989 film)
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