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#107 - Infernal Affairs
Alan Mak and Andrew Lau Wai-keung, 2002
Two different cadets in the Hong Kong police - one a mole by a crime lord, the other expelled in order to go undercover - find themselves on opposite sides during an investiation into organised crime.
I haven't watched Infernal Affairs in about a decade and, seeing as it was available to stream through SBS On Demand, I thought it was worth re-acquainting myself. The high concept of two moles on different sides of the law is a great one and it helps that the film is a lean one, clocking in at just over 90 minutes and only giving its core ensemble of characters enough development so as to avoid dragging things out. After a few minutes setting up the core characters - the cop (Tony Leung, great as always), the mole (Andy Lau) and their respective bosses - it doesn't take long before getting into the action (but not before having one underrated scene where the two leads, unaware of each other's identities, bond over stereo equipment). From there, the film moves slowly but confidently through its plot.
If there is one major problem that I do have with Infernal Affairs, it's that it's ultimately kind of sterile. In keeping with my comments about the utilitarian characterisation, it can be a little hard to tell whether the actors are showing restraint or are just delivering flat performances. There are still some highlights - Eric Tsang serves as the crime boss and he manages to get in a few striking outbursts while still remaining fairly affable and realistic, while Leung and Lau are still capable of subtly conveying increasingly severe inner conflicts through the slightest changes in facial expression. One could also debate the effectiveness of giving each of the leads their own love interest (Leung's character has a thing with his court-ordered psychiatrist, while Lau's character dates a novelist whose story not-so-subtly reflects Lau's own inner conflict), but I personally reckon that, despite their relative lack of scenes, they make a sufficient impact anyway.
Keeping that in mind, the actual style of the film could use improvement anyway. Though I understand that it's not meant to be a straightforward action movie in the vein of John Woo, some sequences could definitely be handled better (such as a certain scene involving an elevator...), which is ruined by gratuitous effects work such as sudden swapping between colour and monochrome for no good reason. Also, just because it's a Hong Kong crime movie doesn't mean it automatically has to have slow motion because more often than not it doesn't serve a purpose (other than maybe get this film to reach the 90-minute mark). Minor technical quibbles aside, Infernal Affairs is still a solid example of modern Hong Kong crime cinema. It may come across as underweight given its reputation, but the tendency to avoid extraneous detail (except where it matters, such as the scene with the stereo equipment or the moment where Leung's character meets an ex-girlfriend) results in a slick film that doesn't wear out its welcome.
Alan Mak and Andrew Lau Wai-keung, 2002
Two different cadets in the Hong Kong police - one a mole by a crime lord, the other expelled in order to go undercover - find themselves on opposite sides during an investiation into organised crime.
I haven't watched Infernal Affairs in about a decade and, seeing as it was available to stream through SBS On Demand, I thought it was worth re-acquainting myself. The high concept of two moles on different sides of the law is a great one and it helps that the film is a lean one, clocking in at just over 90 minutes and only giving its core ensemble of characters enough development so as to avoid dragging things out. After a few minutes setting up the core characters - the cop (Tony Leung, great as always), the mole (Andy Lau) and their respective bosses - it doesn't take long before getting into the action (but not before having one underrated scene where the two leads, unaware of each other's identities, bond over stereo equipment). From there, the film moves slowly but confidently through its plot.
If there is one major problem that I do have with Infernal Affairs, it's that it's ultimately kind of sterile. In keeping with my comments about the utilitarian characterisation, it can be a little hard to tell whether the actors are showing restraint or are just delivering flat performances. There are still some highlights - Eric Tsang serves as the crime boss and he manages to get in a few striking outbursts while still remaining fairly affable and realistic, while Leung and Lau are still capable of subtly conveying increasingly severe inner conflicts through the slightest changes in facial expression. One could also debate the effectiveness of giving each of the leads their own love interest (Leung's character has a thing with his court-ordered psychiatrist, while Lau's character dates a novelist whose story not-so-subtly reflects Lau's own inner conflict), but I personally reckon that, despite their relative lack of scenes, they make a sufficient impact anyway.
Keeping that in mind, the actual style of the film could use improvement anyway. Though I understand that it's not meant to be a straightforward action movie in the vein of John Woo, some sequences could definitely be handled better (such as a certain scene involving an elevator...), which is ruined by gratuitous effects work such as sudden swapping between colour and monochrome for no good reason. Also, just because it's a Hong Kong crime movie doesn't mean it automatically has to have slow motion because more often than not it doesn't serve a purpose (other than maybe get this film to reach the 90-minute mark). Minor technical quibbles aside, Infernal Affairs is still a solid example of modern Hong Kong crime cinema. It may come across as underweight given its reputation, but the tendency to avoid extraneous detail (except where it matters, such as the scene with the stereo equipment or the moment where Leung's character meets an ex-girlfriend) results in a slick film that doesn't wear out its welcome.