"Infernal Affairs"
Chan Win Yan (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) was recruited into
deep undercover when only a cadet in the Hong Kong
Police Academy. Lau Kin Ming (Andy Lau) is a secret
member of a powerful crime triad and is a deeply
hidden mole in the HKPD. The two are so entrenched in
their pretend lives the lines between right and wrong
blur as each tries to uncover the other in "Infernal
Affairs."
Think "Deep Cover." Think "Heat." Think
two-sides-of-the-same-coin. These things come to mind
as I watched the hard-boiled crime drama, "Infernal
Affairs."
Yan is recruited, while a police cadet, by
Superintendent Wong (Anthony Wong Chau-Sang) to enter
the dark and dangerous world of deep undercover within
the Hong Kong triads. He's been at it for over ten
years, moving up the ladder as the trusted lieutenant
of one increasingly powerful boss after another. He
now works for Sam (Eric Tsang) who happens to be the
gang leader who insinuated Ming and others into the
service of the HK police as his moles.
Ming was tops in his cadet class and has risen rapidly
in the HK police. Outwardly, he is a tough
crime-buster and, in all respects, a good cop.
Secretly, he is searching for the mole that has
plagued the triads for years giving valuable
information on their criminal operations to the
police.
Yan and Ming are both undercover and both hunting for
a mole. But, each has been immersed for so long in
their lie that they have formed loyalties and
friendships that neither is prepared for. Yan, doing
the bidding of boss Sam, has become the criminal that
he is supposed to be thwarting. Ming, too, takes on
the aura and responsibility of a cop, pleased with the
accolades he receives from his police colleagues.
"Infernal Affairs" is a character study that delves
into the psychological effects of going deeply
undercover. (But, "Deep Cover" does a better, more
focused job on showing the impact on the mind of the
mole.)
"Infernal Affairs" may confuse some with its many
story threads. This is the kind of complex film that
requires your full attention all the way through. It
isn't a good guy versus bad guy film but one that
shows good and bad, both, in the makeup of the
players. Dual-helmed by Andy Lau (as Wai Keung Lau,
also credited as one of the film's cinematographers
with Yiu-Fai Lai) and Siu Fai Mak (sharing script
credits with Felix Chong), "I.F." is a complicated
tale trying very hard to juggle the many stories of
its many players. Flash backs to the days when Yan and
Ming enter their undercover world lends to the
confusion as their youthful versions don't really
resemble the older moles.
There may be some resistance, in the American market,
to how "Internal Affairs" ends. Our
good-guy-always-wins penchant in the movies is taken
to task and some/many may not appreciate the film noir
ending. The movie bogs down, occasionally, as it tries
to do too much, giving importance to minor characters
that is more distracting than revealing.
The principle cast does a solid job with this gritty
crime drama. Leung and Lau are especially good in
showing the difficulties their dual existences bring
upon them. Anthony Wong stands out as police
Superintendent Wong, the puppet master controlling
Yan's undercover efforts. Eric Tsang is also effective
as the hard-as-nails crime boss, Sam.
In true Hong Kong fashion, "Infernal Affairs" has
spawned two sequels – both directed by Andy Lau.
Having seen the original and knowing the outcome for
its protagonists, I'm curious about the follow up
efforts. Rumors run rampant about an American remake
of the original. I give it a B-.
========== X-RAMR-ID: 38784 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 1326841 X-RT-TitleID: 1121503 X-RT-SourceID: 386 X-RT-AuthorID: 1488 X-RT-RatingText: B-
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