Rating: 8.5/10
Review date: December 9, 2003
Infernal Affairs revolved around the story of two individuals. Chan Wing Yan is an undercover cop who is working as a mole inside the triad while Lau Kin Ming is the exact opposite, a triad mole inside the police force. The race for survival is on when both the police and triad seek to uncover the traitors�
The Hong Kong movie industry has been very unproductive lately, churning out movies ranging from mediocre to downright horrible. Gone are the days of great gangster flicks such as those with Chow Yun-Fat� until now.
Infernal Affairs gain enough popularity in Hong Kong and abroad to be noticed by foreign audience as well. It is truly refreshing to see a Chinese gangster movie which engages its audience through great acting, a tightly written script (the running time is only 97 minutes) and some minor twists instead of pointless action scenes that are so typical of Chinese movies.
Background music is almost non-existent here but the good thing is you will immediately notice it when it is implemented (especially during the more emotional scenes).
What makes this movie tick is the cast who delivers utterly convincing and stellar performances. Praise should be given to Tony Leung (Chan Wing Yan) who is able to act not only with dialogues but also by using his facial expression. His character experienced a wide range of emotion and he doesn�t speak much but I truly sympathize with him at the end of the day. I really can�t imagine any other actors playing this role. Andy Lau stars as Lau King Ming who looks cold and distant most of the time. His acting is as good as what I expect it to be and he portrays his emotions well too.
The two supporting characters, Anthony Wong as Superintendent Wong and Eric Tsang as Sam (the triad leader), deserve plenty of kudos as well.
Eric Tsang managed to look mean most of the time although his round, chubby face makes me feel like laughing every time. Anthony Wong looks very serious throughout as he desperately try to uncover the mole. I would have him to have more screen time because his character is quite likable even though he always has that grumpy look.
Infernal Affairs is highly recommended for fans of Hong Kong movies and those who can appreciate a great police drama with a fantastic story to tell. Directors Andrew Lau and Alan Mak have begin the Infernal Affairs trilogy with a very promising start. Let�s just hope they don�t mess up the two sequels. For those who are interested to know, Infernal Affairs II will be a prequel while Infernal Affairs III will feature some flashbacks as well as continuing where the original movie left off.
*Trivia*
An alternate �politically correct� ending was shot for release in China.
Memorable quote (translated): �Thousands must die so Caesar may be great.�
-Eric Tsang as Sam-
(c) Martin Taidy