"Infernal Affairs"

Question

Just thought I'd pop in and make a quick recommendation.

I live nearby one of the last Mom N' Pop video stores in the area (the others annihilated by the inexorable Ballbuster Video juggernaut) which is owned by a very nice Chinese family. Lucky for me, they're exceptionally good about stocking imported Hong Kong DVDs and, knowing my love for the stuff, they always inform me when a good new one has hit the shelves. Last night I rented a crime thriller called "Infernal Affairs", and boy is it a doozy.

The plot goes like this: Ten years ago the Hong Kong police department decided to plant a mole in the local mobster's gang, a deep cover agent to covertly feed them information on their criminal activities while gradually earning greater trust and rising in rank. What he and his superior don't know is that the mobster has done the exact same thing to the cops - he's planted a mole in their outfit. Eventually both the cops and the gang discover they've got a mole problem, which leaves the Cop-Pretending-To-Be-A-Gangster and the Gangster-Pretending-To-Be-A-Cop with the rather tricky proposition of protecting their cover while hunting down the moles in both their and the enemy's organization.

After turning off "Collateral" somewhere in the beginning of the third act, watching this film really reminded me why I watch as many Hong Kong movies as I do. Unlike the bland, cookie cutter crime thrillers coming out of Hollywood, "Infernal Affairs" is a gripping, well-scripted, beautifully acted, emotionally draining little picture that kept me pinned to my damn seat for its full running time. Andy Lau and Tony Leung both give terrific, heartfelt performances as a pair of demon-haunted men who no longer have any idea who they are.

Anyway, I highly recommend giving you probably won't be able to get it at Blockhead, but I do believe Netflix carries it. I'm curious to see if it got to the regs here as much as it did to me.

Cheers,

B

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]Just thought I'd pop in and make a quick recommendation. I live nearby one of the last Mom N' Pop ... I'm curious to see if it got to the regs here as much as it did to me. Cheers, B[/nq]
It's actually still showing here in Europe. The site below is called Infernal Affairs III. Are we missing something?

http://www.infernalaffairs.com/

See also

http://www.infernalaffairs.co.uk/

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]I live nearby one of the last Mom N' Pop video stores in the area (the others annihilated by the ... has hit the shelves. Last night I rented a crime thriller called "Infernal Affairs", and boy is it a doozy.[/nq]
It's a trilogy. Watching the first was like watching an epic like The Godfather, and it was only 90 minutes long or so! The story was just packed without having explanations showed down the throat. Just excellent, efficient, effective filmmaking.

The second was also great and took place before and after the first one. Great movie as I said, but not as great as the first. A bit different as well, and it was real fun to get the pretext to the first movie because a few of the characters had quite surprising beginnings and funny character arcs...

The third and final movie is very different in style, and not that good IMO. It takes mainly place after the first two and is about the main bad guy trying to tie up all the loose ends.

I watched them all in one evening at the local cinema club. What an evening... I think they said in the introduction that Hollywood remakes were in the making. Haven't investigated that lead any further.

Lars J -- "People generally seem to want software to be free as in speech and/or free as in beer. Unfortunately rather too much of it is free as in jazz." / Janet McKnight, on uk.misc

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Just thought I'd pop in and make a quick recommendation.[/nq]
Scorsese is directing a remake (The Departed), with Irish characters.

Mysti

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]Just thought I'd pop in and make a quick recommendation.[/nq]
[nq:1]Scorsese is directing a remake (The Departed), with Irish characters.[/nq]
Yeah, I found that out after checking the film on the IMBD. While I'm thrilled that Hong Kong kung fu films are finally getting the major theatrical releases they deserve here in the states, it's a shame that their superb dramas still have to go the remake route. Mind you, I'll see anything Scorsese does, and one can instantly see why the plot to "Infernal Affairs" would capture his imagination.

Cheers,

B

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]It's a trilogy.[/nq]
But is it really a trilogy? I suspect it's simply a movie with two sequels (i.e. the "A Better Tomorrow" series).

Watching the first was like watching an epic like The
[nq:1]Godfather, and it was only 90 minutes long or so! The story was just packed without having explanations showed down the throat. Just excellent, efficient, effective filmmaking.[/nq]
I found myself wishing it had been a bit longer - not because I felt it required more time to tell the story but because I found the world of these characters so fascinating and simply didn't want to leave it.
[nq:1]The second was also great and took place before and after the first one. Great movie as I said, but ... place after the first two and is about the main bad guy trying to tie up all the loose ends.[/nq]
I've just added them to my Greencine rental queue and shall certainly check them out.

Cheers,

B

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]... it's a shame that their superb dramas still have to go the remake route. Mind you, I'll see anything ... "Infernal Affairs" would capture his imagination. Cheers, B Well, the original is premiering here in SF at the Balboa 2/3/2004.[/nq]
Something, anyway

Mysti

Usenet · Answer

I just happened to complete the trilogy last weekend with INFERNAL AFFAIRS III, and I agree with Lars - first one's best, second one's not so but still watchable, third one's a letdown.

Aside from some unnecessary and goofy subplots (psychiatrist lets her patient sleep through their sessions because he's insomniac?), INFERNAL AFFAIRS is a really slick thriller with some really smart writing - something I've always found rare in HK cinema. And rarer still, it's in both the plot and the dialogue. Some may find it corny, but I really liked the scene where this guy meets his ex-lover whom he hasn't seen in 5 years, and she has a little girl now, and then later we find out she lied to him, her daughter's not 4 years old, she's 5...

INFERNAL AFFAIRS II is a prequel - and it actually doesn't suck. It's not an unqualified success like the first either, but it's fascinating watching the characters develop over a period of several years into the people they are in the original. Ballsy of the filmmakers too, in going this route. The problem is the structure - the first had two protagonists, and juggled them rather elegantly, but they bit off more than they could chew in this one with four viewpoint characters.

INFERNAL AFFAIRS III is worth watching only if you absolutely must know the final fate of the last surviving major character of the first movie. But again, structure problems led to a lack of focus as to who the story is really about. That, and plot holes big enough to shove your favourite really big thing through. All three movies really do feel epic, with a great, gritty and uncompromising story - I think it'd be an interesting exercise to try and fix the narrative problems and make the two sequels as good as the first.

I'm also keen on seeing what Scorsese does with the material. Damon and DiCaprio in the leads should be fun to watch (let's hope they don't ***** up and put Matt in the Tony Leung role and Leo in the Andy Lau role). And as I don't think it likely Scorsese would make a 90-minute movie, I'm looking forward to seeing him inserting some story threads from either of the two sequels.

"Infernal Affairs"

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