Infernal Affairs

Having seen every summer blockbuster thus far, LK and I are out of movies this week. So we're on to DVDs.

My brother procured the Infernal Affairs trilogy recently, and my family's gone a little nutty over the Hong Kong movies. My father, the king of MP3s in the house, has already gotten hold of Tsai Chin's "Forgotten Time," the song which plays in the stereo shop when Tony Leung's character, Yan, demonstrates a set for Andy's Lau's Chin.

The first installment "Infernal Affairs" won several awards in Hong Kong, including Best Movie and Best Song, and performed very well at the box office. I anticipated an action film stuffed with bullets and blood and car chasing. While there are fancy cars and the occasional bullet-riddled body, the film's actually more dramatic than the usual HK movie fare, thanks in no small part to the ensemble of actors.

Yan is a cop working undercover in a traid and Ming enters the police force to gather information for his triad. Cat-and-mouse game, the movie is rather gripping. I got rather attached to the characters, particularly Tony Leung's scruffy and smirking Yan. He does get a little looney at times. Ming walks the fine line between good cop and bad cop - does he really want to be a good guy?

The drama is played out against a dynamic Hong Kong backdrop. Hong Kong's always been exciting in real life and the movies. The script is belivable for the most part, except for when both sides discover the presence of moles - surely the cops and baddies would be smart enough to stop meeting with their moles in the event of being followed?

Well, we'll be watching the next two movies. They should be fun, although my brother warns that we'll have to pay attention in the third film. The plot's a little convoluted.

Go here to see the official site, and to listen to the cool soundtrack.

The players in Infernal Affairs III

Posted by Monoceros at June 8, 2004 2:44 AM