Once a Thief: Hong Kong Cinema Classics – Shout! Factory (UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1991
Director: John Woo
Writers: John Woo, Patrick Leung, Janet Chun
Cast: Chow Yun-fat, Leslie Cheung, Cherie Chung, Kenneth Tsang, Paul Chu, Bowie Wu 

Release Date: January 27th, 2026
Approximate Running Time: 108 Minutes 16 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / HDR10 Dolby Vision
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Cantonese, DTS-HD Mono English, DTS-HD Mono Alternate English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free (4K UHD), Region A (Blu-ray)
Retail Price: $39.99

"Once a Thief is an action/comedy/romance movie involving the plight of three master thieves (a la Pink Panther). All three were raised by the same father as street orphans. After a successful art heist followed by a pledge to make it the last crime ever for the trio, the plot revolves around the theft of a mysterious "cursed" painting and how its obsession affects the family?" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (4K UHD, Blu-ray)

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "4K Scan from the Original Camera Negative."

Once a Thief comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 76.7 GB

Feature: 76.3 GB

Another John Woo film gets a massive upgrade after lackluster home media releases; this new release will be a revelation for those who are familiar with the film. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, contrast, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image retains an organic look. That said, this new transfer looks phenomenal, and it is easily the best this film has ever looked on home media.

Once a Thief comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 43.7 GB

Feature: 27.8 GB

This Blu-ray uses the same master that is used for the 4K UHD disc.

Audio: 5/5 (All Audio Tracks)

This release comes with three audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Cantonese, a DTS-HD mono mix in English, and an alternate DTS-HD mono mix in English. All of the tracks have some dialogue in French and the Cantonese track has some dialogue in English. All tracks sound excellent; dialogue always comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and range-wise action sequences sound appropriately robust. Included are English subtitles for the Cantonese language track, English SDH for the English language tracks, and English subtitles for the English language tracks when French is spoken.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD disc include an audio commentary with film critic James Mudge.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include a theatrical trailer (1 minute 22 seconds, DTS-HD mono with Cantonese text and non-removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actor Kenneth Tsang (7 minutes, DTS-HD stereo Cantonese with non-removable English subtitles), an interview with Frank Djeng about Leslie Cheung titled Once a Star, Always an Icon (17 minutes 8 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English with non-removable English subtitles for Cantonese film clips), an interview with author Grady Hendrix titled Hong Kong Confidential: Once a Thief (8 minutes 14 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with editor David Wu titled Art of the Steal (10 minutes 3 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with producer Terence Chang titled Heists and Lows (7 minutes 55 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with cinematographer Poon Hang-Sang titled Stealing Some Shots (27 minutes 10 seconds, DTS-HD stereo Cantonese with non-removable English subtitles), an interview with screenwriter Clifton Ko titled Thoughts About Thievery (21 minutes 24 seconds, DTS-HD stereo Cantonese with non-removable English subtitles), an interview with director John Woo Handling a Heist (23 minutes 53 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English with non-removable English subtitles for Cantonese film clips), and an audio commentary with James Mudge.

Other extras include a slipcover.

Summary:

A trio of art thieves, who have known each other since childhood, contemplate retirement and living a normal life after completing their latest job. When a job to steal a priceless painting comes their way, two of them break their promise to retire and take on the risky heist.

John Woo had just completed his most expensive and personal film, Bullet in the Head, in 1990. When it did not perform as well as his previous three films, John Woo felt devastated and promised his producer that he would make back the money he lost with his next film. For his next film, Once a Thief, he would make a more lighthearted affair that returned him to his comedic roots. Although made quickly over a span of two months, Once a Thief would go on to be John Woo’s second most successful Hong Kong film.

John Woo sets Once a Thief apart from his other Hong Kong films by setting part of it in France. He had long been an admirer of the French New Wave, in particular François Truffaut's Jules and Jim, and Once a Thief’s love triangle mirrors that aforementioned film. His other inspiration was Alfred Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief, and Once a Thief would feature some of its locations.

To help John Woo pull off the difficult task of completing a film from shooting to post-production in a mere two months are a trio of Hong Kong cinema’s most celebrated actors: Chow Yun-fat (City of Fire), Leslie Cheung (Farewell My Concubine), and Cherie Chung (Wild Search). They are all exemplary in their roles, and their onscreen chemistry is undeniable. All three of them were at the height of their careers, and for Cherie Chung, Once a Thief would be her swan song. Rounding out the cast are other familiar faces like Kenneth Tsang (A Better Tomorrow) and Paul Chu (The Killer), who portray the three main characters' father figures.

Although Once a Thief is a breezy film that very effectively employs humor, John Woo does not shy away from doing what he does best: creating explosive action set pieces. The most notable of these are two heist sequences and a shootout finale that perfectly blend humor and bombastic action. The second heist sequence in particular is a flawlessly constructed moment that overflows with tension. When it comes to action, John Woo is a filmmaker who never disappoints.

Once a Thief is really a special film in John Woo’s filmography, and it is a shame he did not venture into this type of film ever again. While his films that followed have effectively employed humor, he never found that perfect blend of comedy and action like he did with Once a Thief. Ultimately, Once a Thief is a highly entertaining film that always exceeds its audience's expectations and leaves you wanting more.

Once a Thief gets an exceptional release from Shout Factory that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras. Highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer