Thought Chinese thrillers were all about style and blood, as seen in John Woo and Ringo Lam's work (it's basically thanks to them we got Tarantino)? Watch Infernal Affairs, and think again. It's a smart, expertly made film, which succeeds in telling a good story without relying on slo-mo shots or hyperbolic shootouts.
The Hong Kong-based film revolves around two men working on opposite sides of the law: Yan (Tony Leung) is a talented cop who's been doing undercover jobs in the Triads for ten years, Lau (Andy Lau) is a mole placed by gangsters inside the police. They know nothing about each other, at least in the beginning. Pretty soon, though, the situation gets complicated, as Lau's unit decides to take down Triad boss Sam, for whom Yan is "working". Both sides realize there must be a traitor, and it's only a matter of time before someone loses in this cat-and-rat game.
Unlike many other Eastern action flicks, Infernal Affairs deserves praise not for the inventive camera-work or bloody climax (though there is some of the first), but for the foolproof screenplay. The plot is brilliantly constructed, with believable characters (most notably Yan, given tragic intensity by Leung) and remarkable, intelligent twists, mixing genre archetypes with Shakespearean sadness and grandiosity.
In short, one of the best Asian movies of recent years, and a great appetizer to enjoy before watching Martin Scorsese's The Departed, a remake that, for once, manages to be as good as the original, if not better.
The Hong Kong-based film revolves around two men working on opposite sides of the law: Yan (Tony Leung) is a talented cop who's been doing undercover jobs in the Triads for ten years, Lau (Andy Lau) is a mole placed by gangsters inside the police. They know nothing about each other, at least in the beginning. Pretty soon, though, the situation gets complicated, as Lau's unit decides to take down Triad boss Sam, for whom Yan is "working". Both sides realize there must be a traitor, and it's only a matter of time before someone loses in this cat-and-rat game.
Unlike many other Eastern action flicks, Infernal Affairs deserves praise not for the inventive camera-work or bloody climax (though there is some of the first), but for the foolproof screenplay. The plot is brilliantly constructed, with believable characters (most notably Yan, given tragic intensity by Leung) and remarkable, intelligent twists, mixing genre archetypes with Shakespearean sadness and grandiosity.
In short, one of the best Asian movies of recent years, and a great appetizer to enjoy before watching Martin Scorsese's The Departed, a remake that, for once, manages to be as good as the original, if not better.