Johnnie To’s Closet Picks

[@josephhallify]

Really happy to listen Cantonese in this channel. 好開心可以喺呢度聽到廣東話😊

[@chernhwei]

同感

[@errgo2713]

聽到真係好感動 🥺

[@willyang4487]

同意

[@LeBronKK]

"In the future, I'll make a black-and-white movie." I will be waiting.

[@GreatistheWorld]

Was not prepared for how quickly I became impatient 😅

[@johnta17]

Election, Election 2, and Exiled all need to be on Criterion.

[@alexhiguera8753]

and election 3 must be made soon!!!

[@AVillaBeats]

His film “Too Many Way To Be No. 1” is a long lost masterpiece that demands a proper release.

[@valdezsaihttam5871]

"ermmmmm.... Election is already in the collection ☝️🤓" jkjkjkjkjkjk

[@trip66]

Those are the 3 films that got me into him! I remember seeing the trailer for Exiled and had to see that. Been a fan ever since!

[@Shionshowa]

@@AVillaBeatshe didn’t direct

[@justinbohna]

He was Very passionate about these.I feel the need to watch all his picks.

[@stanleychen7147]

you better

[@zackmichelson9337]

You know, Johnnie To being a mix of Kurosawa, Scorsese, and Kieslowski makes a lot of sense

[@bobbyologun1517]

His Excellency Johnnie To :D

[@PHF28]

I love his films. Glad to see him here. Really talented, versatile, and unique director.

[@soshiderek]

One of the Best but haven't seen any new projects of his lately.

[@nskskfj-f7y]

To sir, thanks for loving Hong Kong, Hong Kong(ers) love you too.❤

[@Keyser666]

Most worthy visit the closet has had for a while. A genuinely great film director.

[@shimmymod]

Excellent taste too.

[@WorldBurningTime]

Everyone invited is “worthy,” whatever that means.

[@Keyser666]

@@WorldBurningTime - It's their closet, but so often the people chosen just elicit a shrug. So no, they are not.

[@jamiefox5756]

Fulltime Killer really needs at least a Blu-ray release.

[@TheMikenanners]

@@WorldBurningTime Shady gatekeeping weirdos are always vocal in this channel’s comment section. A shame to see one get so many likes this time, even if it’s in deserved praise of To.

[@dfu3053]

I'm watching this video because of Trial and Error's video recreation, great film picks by Director Mr To!

[@tcrime]

Love this guy. One of his films that doesn't seem to get much mention is Drug War, a very cool hardboiled crime movie with a brutal edge to it.

[@hesaidgoosaid]

Looks like that one is on Tubi, gonna check it out!

[@GreatistheWorld]

@@hesaidgoosaid hell yeah! Lotta To movies on Tubi, and Netflix

[@hesaidgoosaid]

@@GreatistheWorld it was great, I gotta watch the Election movies next.

[@annanip97]

Mr To is someone who is fully passionate, hard working and very talented individual in the filming production industry, he truly love his job and care for the younger generations who are currently working in the field. He has the bravery to speak up for the issues in Hong Kong Filming Industry which deserve absolute respect by a lot of Hongkongers. I wish all the best to him.

[@Advent3546]

One of the coolest and greatest to ever pick up a camera

[@soshiderek]

His movies are gifts to fans!

[@Thecuervogold]

This is some serious unintentional ASMR

[@Jurry253]

Woah. Legendary. To is one of the most consistent filmmakers of the last 50 years imo.

[@ruff1draft]

The man looks very well indeed. The excitement on his face when picking up the films he wanted to watch. He was like a teenager all over again you could see it in his eyes. Bless Johnnie To legendary filmmaker

[@anthtan]

Can we get John Woo and Wong Kar Wai in here next? Santa, please?

[@mattrodarte1138]

The passion and love coming from my biggest influence and inspiration as a screenwriter and director, this is hands down my favorite criterion closet video! 🙏😭💙🔥🎥🎞️

[@CultureDTCTV]

I've never see To sir this happy lmao, he's always swearing and grumpy on set but when faced with good cinema, he's like a happy fanboy. Love his films.

[@chernhwei]

😂

[@Sleepy-j7v]

I m so glad to see Director To in this channel. He is a man with great integrity.

[@CalebRichardsChannel]

Brightened my day to see this legend in one of these. His love of cinema and artists is palpable

[@feihung87]

Thanks for having Mr. To to the closet. When I discovered his work through Vengeance, I couldn't believe how prolific he was. PTU, Exiled, The Mission, Breaking News, Election, Throw Down, etc. Worse part was having to import the DVD's of these classics and putting a dent in my wallet. Criterion should release blu rays of Johnnie's whole filmography.

[@Coolestmovies]

Honestly, if they can do a Wong Kar-Wai box set, they can do a Johnnie To boxed set. The guy is every bit the visual stylist - especially from the mid 90’s onward, and made a number of movies that would fit together thematically in a set. On top of that, many of To’s movies were commercial, and successful in Hong Kong, whereas many of Wong’s movies were not overly popular at home.

[@RandyWhite-e6t]

The mission (1999) is one of my favorite 90s films

[@bored1ca]

I saw the North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and the next year I saw Fulltime Killer. His films are simply incredible!

[@isaacmartinez6904]

The man who made amazing Hong Kong movies like The Heroic Trio and Running Out Of Time is here. Love his work and his movie choices.

[@pzmann]

His love of movies just made my day. A Johnnie To Criterion box set would be fantastic.

[@marktsang8088]

He makes Hong Kong people proud. We feel so grateful to have him 😇

[@KUNGFUBOB1212]

Watching this brought me pure joy. Johnny's picks are awesome. And wow, what a fantastic voice he has. I'd forgotten as it's been a long time since I saw him in an interview.

[@daveton9033]

Joy ? did you watch his recent CNN interview?

[@KUNGFUBOB1212]

@@daveton9033 no, I haven't.

[@Neo20050]

Thanks for inviting Mr. To to recommend his choices. 😊 Looking forward to his black-and-white movies

[@mavjun]

This made me smile so much. Love Johnnie To's work and cinematic style within the HK action crime genre. Criterion never disappoints haha!

[@josephle979]

This is the first time I've heard Johnnie To speak and I would like to say he is very charismatic and you can tell the love and passion he has for the art of filmmaking.

[@TheJohnDoeLibraryRoom.]

Breaking News and Vengeance are two of my favorites of his. The Election films are probably his biggest achievements though, the ending of the first film stayed with you long after it was over.

[@alessandrobolchini1564]

Throw Down is an absolute masterpiece

[@lervish1966]

Why?

[@alessandrobolchini1564]

I think it is a beautiful and heartwarming tale about the joy of living enhanced by To's godtier filmmaking, which truly makes Throw Down a special movie. There are a lot of scenes or just single frames that are simply beautiful to look at. If you haven't seen it you will understand what I mean once you watch it

[@SonateSonate]

@@lervish1966 because he says so

[@lervish1966]

@@SonateSonate Zardoz is a masterpiece.

[@nalanish]

exactly!!!!!

[@amasvodka]

An absolute LEGEND of Hong Kong cinema and cinema history in general!

[@ShadyCopernicus]

What a guy! Glad to see him still so alive and passionate. The first Election movie is truly a masterpiece. I don't think the second one was on par, but it still was good. Looking forward to his future works.

[@magdalenatalik870]

What a joy!!! Finally Kieślowski's fan!!!

[@trip66]

Eureka has been getting a lot of his films out on blu-ray recently, but the one that desperately needs a blu-ray is The Mission! I would kill for a restoration of that!

[@errgo2713]

+1 The Mission blu-ray. Take my money.

[@luckyblank]

I love this man, just from watching this. So touching.

[@brandothecatmeow]

His love of Kursawa, Kobayashi, and Scorsese is evident in his movies. I really loved Throw Down & and I have told many people about it. I have become a huge fan of his.

[@errgo2713]

Glad to see some love for Throw Down here

[@sick0spherean]

The spirit of Peckinpah lives within his works too. Exiled reminded me of the Wild Bunch.

[@mkaye818]

@@sick0spherean His love of Sam really thrilled me !

[@tdtm82]

What a treat. I'm a huge fan. I love his movies. He is an inspiration. Love his style. So glad that he hasn't been desentised by Holllywood as well. I would love him to shoot outsite Hong Kong one day. He's shot movies without scripts. Such an incredible talanet. Criterion should release a box-set for his 70th birthday.

[@namelessone2287]

I love Johnnie To - for me, the quintessential art action filmmaker

[@givenmurong4381]

Cc more Johnnie’s films ,johnnie more movies in the future ,so many people love you in different countries ,proud of you

[@soshiderek]

Johnnie To, what a Legend. The creator of Milkyway Productions, Director from romances to triad action, literally every film is a must watch hit for all movie fans!

[@bored1ca]

One of my favorite Johnnie To films, The Mission has never had a proper North American release, so maybe Criterion can do something about it?

[@ronrimsite6948]

...for Francis Ng's pulsing forehead vein alone!

[@chernhwei]

睇見阿杜sir咁開心，我都跟住開心😂

[@scottboswell6406]

Love the b&w film picks, love the Three Colors Trilogy (seen them so many times), love the great directors love!

[@johnnysopals]

Absolute love this guy. One of the greats!!

[@xiaolinzhong9900]

Please release more from him!

[@akaRicoSanchez]

If proof was needed for To's versatile genius, this comment section quoting more than a dozen different films of his as "the best" should do the trick. I'll go Breaking News myself.

[@ygma]

3:54 Mr. To said "very heavy ar" actually.

[@willyang4487]

My favorite film director of all time ❤🎉!

[@aratufilmes]

A true master in the world of movies!!!

[@supershinhwa]

WOW thank you having such an iconic director from Hong Kong! ❤

[@mickster50000]

the mission 1999 needs to come to blu ray

[@Shionshowa]

Awesome for speaking Cantonese mr. TO ❤

[@jsmith5937]

thanks Mr. To! yes, Akira Kurosawa 黒澤 明 is the teacher for all of us. both of you have made brilliant movies!

[@andrewweymouth9423]

A genre film MASTER that needs his catalog better served in the West -

[@patrickyim7733]

So cool to see Johnnie To. I think Hong Kong cinema gets overshadowed a lot but there’s a lot of good actors and directors that people are unaware of. Some of his movies I recommend are: The Mission, Running Out of Time, Running Out of Time 2, Running on Karma, Breaking News. I wish Hong Kong movies were on mainstream streaming platforms for more people to see.

[@williamlau4051]

omg!!! the mission and the heroic trio are sooo good

[@Rakib.Islam.E]

One and only Arthouse Action filmmaker. And undoubtedly his taste is Great too.

[@Elfalsoranzi]

A teacher recommending masterpieces..thanx!

[@user-lz1qy1nx7n]

A man who don’t lost his spirit.

[@davyp1532]

Great selection! I lived in Hong Kong in the seventies and went to see Straw dogs at the cinema, I was 15. Maybe Johnnie was at the same screening,Who knows!

[@rfrover]

I’ve always been fascinated by Hong Kong, but Johnnie To’s films made me fall in love with it.

[@nothingalientome]

WOW on what pretext did you manage to get him here? Most I've ever been blindsided by with a visit to the Closet.

[@Haerinx87]

Same pretext they get every director/actor to appear, I would imagine

[@nothingalientome]

@Haerinx87 Well usually the directors/actors are part of a new film. So did Johnnie To make a new movie?

[@Shionshowa]

@@nothingalientomehe did finish filming but it in post right now and expected it to release next year so it’s not finish yet.

[@nothingalientome]

@@Shionshowa thank you for the non-sarcastic answer!

[@GuideToTheVideoStoreChris]

Since I've been on an Asian cinema kick lately, this is just wonderful to see Johnnie dropping by the Criterion Closet as he shares his personal favorites (I like some of these picks too). Awesome taste he has there which one can try noticing the influence on his works, too. Let us hope to see Criterion give a treatment in releasing more of his other best works in soon... Funny thing was he didn't mention one of his own works the label released but hey... The Heroic Trio is a pretty cool watch I loved so far as for I being a starter to his filmography, I look forward to checking out more from him soon because I remember hearing some positive praise on his works back then which now is a time for me to explore finally.

[@pastafarian2046]

Id just like to note how immaculate his suit is. Always respecting the occasion, and doing it in style.

[@waimah4971]

Genre and Style: Roma is a black-and-white film with a deliberate pace, showcasing rich visual storytelling. It employs long takes and intricate cinematography to immerse viewers in its world. Plot: The narrative follows Cleo as she navigates challenges in her personal life, including an unplanned pregnancy, while remaining a cornerstone of stability for the family she works for. The film also explores themes of class disparity, gender roles, and the sociopolitical tensions of the time. The song from Roma is indeed captivating and adds depth to the film’s emotional atmosphere. 💕 Key Lyrics (Translated): "I have promised you / to forget you, and I haven't been able to / I have tried but I don't find / that my soul doesn't remember you.""I have promised you / to forget you, and I haven't been able to / I have tried but I don't find / that my soul doesn't remember you."

[@caiodossantos2229]

"Sparrow" is a masterpiece.

[@one-timonger]

I mean I knew Johnnie To had immaculate taste from the directorial decisions in his films. But I didn't know he had such IMMACULATE TASTE! Kieślowski?? Kobayashi?? Wow, just wow.

[@bazaci]

杜sir looks so happy here. Thanks CC for sharing this with us :)

[@JefferyEPetrone]

The Eclipse Series sets are some of your most exciting releases.

[@wangdavid7437]

We need 4k release of his masterpiece The Mission.

[@llchapman1234]

Kurasawa is a god. Love that he picked one he hadn't watched before.

[@jessicachan9414]

謝謝分享🙏☕️🍀🍎 happy to see Jonnie to share his favorite movies ⭐️

[@thirdeyes9993]

Salute to To Sir 我好期待杜sir拍黑白片！

[@henrycheung4327]

Wow!!!!!! Johnnie To show up in the Criterion Closet, what a suprise news for me this morning, he is my favourite favourite favourite Hong Kong director, his mention All the films, almost i had All for myself, anyway what a good taste for the art of films🎉🎉🎉

[@MajorPhilGraves]

One of the best to ever do it

[@messedupdude11]

More Johnnie To in the collection please. How about a Criterion edition of ELECTION as the next one??????

[@AVillaBeats]

His film “Too Many Way To Be No. 1” is a long lost masterpiece that demands a proper release.

[@sionsonorism]

i’ve been waiting for the day that somebody picks up throw down but this is even better

[@GreatistheWorld]

I started watching Kieślowski recently on Criterion Channel on To’s urging, and he’s right. I should have been watching this. The most prestigious closet appearance yet! Please work on a Breaking News criterion edition, thank you!

[@CultureDTCTV]

The Mission and Exile on 4K please 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@ruff1draft]

Absolutely brilliant

[@NoirFan84]

He made some of my favourite picks I've seen of anyone in the closet for a while. I'm not sure I can remember anyone else showing as much love to Kobayashi as he just did & that's always gonna win me over. Hara-kiri is the best samurai movie ever made btw & we need the almost equally outstanding Samurai Rebellion to get the big HU/UHD upgrade Criterion treatment. Maybe bring Yoji Yamada's The Twilight Samurai to the collection too whilst you are at it. 🙏

[@WorldBurningTime]

It’s fun to see people picking movies regardless of who they are or what they pick, but I found this one to not be as interesting as many of the more recent closet videos because he picked many well known movies. I personally prefer when the guest picks things that are not often talked about or movies I had never taken time to consider before.

[@oracle_8947]

If Criterion made new releases of any of Yoji Yamada's period piece films I think I might cry lol. They can be difficult to find. And on the topic of samurai films, a Criterion release of Hideo Gosha's Goyokin (1969) would be extremely based, too.

[@NoirFan84]

@@oracle_8947 Chushingura (1962) getting a restoration & UHD would look pretty spectacular too. All those vibrant colours with some Dolby Vision thrown in. 😍

[@maceocortezz9384]

One of the greatest living directors!!!

[@cardiac161]

Please have Criterion pick up The Mission!!

[@mikehenrybell2398]

Yeah, they should remaster it

[@catmatism]

I love his Exiled.

[@NickPiers]

I bet you anything that Scorsese would be delightfully honored to have one of his films picked by Johnnie To.

[@旭亮搜神记]

Johnnie To is my favorite Hong Kong filmmaker of all time!

[@evanmichael3153]

Great picks from the man in the dapper suit... 🤘📽️❤️

[@williamwong8967]

香港人支持你. 我最喜愛的導演是Martin Scorsese.

[@andrewbacon3583]

Maybe my favorite closet video ever.

[@guest_informant]

Anyone else seen 'The Mad Monk'? Crazy crazy film :-)

[@danielh5159]

and blind detective!

[@maxalserda9127]

Greetings from HK, he's my favorite director!

[@AlanSmith88888]

Election and Election 2 were absolute masterpieces. The "godfather" movies of the east. Too bad a third will never be made.

[@ngoodey]

When I lived in Hong Kong there were two art house cinemas that showed foreign films but they would often have the same films on for months. One was Three Colors trilogy, people in Hong Kong with a decent education seemed fascinated with them

[@carlnilssonyoung8961]

Yes, coz HKers were rich but subconsciously longing for freedom, liberty, equality. U could see fraternity, more than 2 million people on street protest ccp dictatorship

[@rffg781]

Throw Down is my favorite Johnnie To movie!

[@sk9091]

The Mission please release blu ray

[@OjiYoruko]

PTU is a masterpiece and you can see Kieslowski influence on it

[@mmayer1558]

PTU, Paul Thomas Underson

[@vernandoariyanto2012]

Wow, I Also most favourite for Mr. Scorsese, Mr To. 你真係勁😊

[@chrisl6809]

Really looking forward to your own black n white production….. thx To sir ❤❤ ,from HK

[@hmc_ivanman9291]

He is a master filmmaker!