Infernal Affairs (2002)

Andrew Lau & Alan Mak

Hong Kong

97 min, color, Cantonese (English subtitles)

Review © 2003 Branislav L. Slantchev

Much ink has been sacrificed at the wailing wall of Hong Kong cinema demise, most of it premature. It may well be the case that HK is finally forced to compete with Hollywood, and it may well be that local productions will either go the way of a local coffee shop when Starbucks arrives in town or find a way to stay by locating a proper niche but still offering high quality entertainment. The hugely successful Infernal Affairs is a good example of what HK can still produce that Hollywood probably does not dare touch without a lot of marketing research.

Edison Chan as the young Lau	A meeting of HiFi minds

A straight drama masquerading as a cop flick, this film explores the lives of two undercover agents, one inserted among the triads, and the other inserted in the police force itself. This is not a typical thriller in the sense that the audience knows from the beginning the identities of the two moles, and in fact the entire movie revolves around the frantic attempts of both sides to root them out. In a race against death (for there can be no mercy for the loser), the police and the gang compete amidst conflicting loyalties, doubts, and inner torment of the leads.

Anthony Wong and Tony Leung Chiu Wai	Andy Lau is the mole in the police force

Tony Leung Chiu Wai, perhaps the best actor working in HK today, delivers a superb performance as the undercover cop Chan, reprising his role in Hard Boiled, with better results. Nothing on this side is new. The idea of an agent who has spent too much time down in the gutter with triads, which is causing him to doubt his identity, the strain of disloyalty to everyday friends and gang-members taking constant toll on his life has been done before, most notably by Johnnie To. It is to Leung's acting skills credit that he does not overplay it a bit. In fact, his restrained delivery where most of his suffering finds expression through his face and much less through his words, is a joy to watch.

The stake-out	The declaration of war

The twist is the triad mole working at the police. Andy Lau, another seasoned actor who has made a giant leap from his earlier non-stop acting schedule resulting in frequent subpar work, shines as officer Lau. Lau has seen a nearly meteoric rise through the ranks, helped in no small degree by his triad connections that allow him to bust all sorts of cases not related to his sponsoring head honco (Eric Tsang). But he has a girlfriend (Elva Hsiao) who is writing a novel about a man who is losing his identity by having to perform different roles. Slowly, Lau develops a strong desire to go straight, be a real cop, and ditch his shady past.

Kelly Chan as the psychiatrist	Andy is promoted to internal affairs

The snag, of course, is that the police mole whose identity he does not know is trying hard to expose the triad mole at the police, that is him. The two square off against each other in a battle of wits without ever facing the opponent. Strangely enough, and this is another testimony to the power of this film, it is not easy to decide which side to root for. We want them both to somehow win, or, if not that, we want neither to lose.

Chan: trying to figure out the other mole	The other life of officer Lau

Such a resolution is, of course, impossible, and so the question then becomes who will come out on top. Chan's endurance is tested when a fellow triad member dies of gunshot wounds telling him that he knows that Chan is the mole but has not betrayed him because of their friendship. Yet his loyalties remain straight without confusion, to the end. Lau, on the other hand, is a lot more complicated. He has discovered the desire to become good, but he has also realized that to do so, he may have to sacrifice some very decent people.

Lau: trying to figure out the other mole	The last moments of SP Wong

The big question, then, is whether one can "become good" if this really means destroying those who are aware of his past. It may be easy to kill "bad" people, like the gang leader, but what about fellow police officers? And how many? Interestingly, the film actually offers two alternate endings, which give the two possible answers. The theatrical version is perhaps the more realistic one.

Tony Leung Chiu Wai, best actor	Lau calls the rival mole

It is somewhat odd for a modern HK film to have to female leads. The three beautiful women who appear sporadically throughout are quite peripheral to the plot. It is also somewhat unusual that a cops vs. triads film would have very little action sequences. The bulk of the film is spent in dialogue. But it all works rather well, helped to a significant degree by the rock solid performances of all actors, but especially Andy Lau and Tony Leung. The direction is also very stylish, with Christopher Doyle's hand showing itself in the removal of all color saturation, and basking the film in a distinct steely shade of blue.

Elva Hsiao realizes art imitates life	The meeting of the moles

Inevitably, as befits a successful film, Infernal Affairs has spawned two sequels (or actually, a prequel and a sequel), which flesh out the characters and bring the story to a conclusion. Although I am interested in seeing these, I must say that without the three actors who lift the film from a basically OK to an excellent one, the sequels will probably be much less engaging. But I am reserving judgment until I see them.

On the skyscraper roof	Gratuitous shot of Tony Leung

I have the special edition 2-disc set from MegaStar. The film is presented in 2.35:1 widescreen format and is anamorphic. The transfer is very good, as one would expect from such a recent production. The two available Cantonese tracks are DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 (there's also a DD5.1 Mandarin one), and both a crisp, and well-balanced. The removable English subtitles are excellent as well. There's also an audio commentary track that I have not listened to. The second disc is full of extras including a story synopsis, talent files, a music video, a Making Of featurette, and a photo gallery.

December 17, 2003