I'm counting this as a first viewing, because I think I may have seen part of it on a bus trip during high school. I only remembered the premise, but nothing else. Didn't remember the bomb, or any of the set pieces.
This is directed by John Woo, and it's got all his staples. Unfortunately, most of these characteristics are only novel the first time you see them. With a modern eye, these tricks are kind of silly. Slow-motion gun fights, jumping around with explosions, and lots of birds. At least Woo restrained the usage of birds to the last big sequence. The slow-motion stuff got incredibly annoying. A well-shot sequence doesn't need slow-motion to get the beauty of a composition.
The story is pretty high-concept stuff. It's a great story, and Travolta and Cage are an excellent pairing. They both get to flex some acting muscles, and even the sequence of the story is pleasing. But the direction just stands in the way of what could have been an action classic, turning it into a mildly annoying failure.
Woo also really likes to drench music over some of these action sequences. I don't think I mind that, but somehow, the volume on it was much higher than it should be.
I might return to this again, but I don't think it will be any time soon.
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