Cops & Triads

Infernal Affairs (Wu jian dao)

With Infernal Affairs, Hong Kong filmmakers Wai Keung Lau and Siu Fai Mak have successfully taken a smart script and a great cast, added some stylistic cinematography, and dual-fistedly given a new twist to a formulaic genre. Lau Kin Ming (Andy Lau), a young, loyal gangster, is ordered by his Triad boss Sam (Eric Tsang) to join the police force. While on the inside the young mole can keep a close eye on police activity, ensuring the gang's activities will not be interrupted. Police Superintendent Wong (Anthony Wong Chau-Sang) has a similar plan. He takes a bright, ambitious police cadet Yan (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and makes him an undercover cop with plans to get him inside the Triads. Years pass and both are now deep into their assigned roles. Undercover cop Yan, more or less living the life of a gangster, is now a member of Boss Sam's group, and "Officer" Lau has all the appearance of a good cop trying to bust up the Triads' drug ring. During a bust that could finally bring down Boss Sam, the moles inadvertently become aware of each other's existence, and each is left wondering who is on the inside. What follows is a unique and exciting twist on the classic cat and mouse chase in which each man is not fighting for his life, but for his anonymity. In addition to its plot twists, what lifts Infernal Affairs above the standard cop story is its subtle exploration of the relative nature of good and evil. Part action, part psychological examination, Infernal Affairs is a sharp and fresh take on the classic crime story, and the inspiration for a 2006 Martin Scorsese remake (The Departed). Not to be missed. --Rob Bracco

Two men have trouble maintaining their identities as one works undercover as a cop for a crime lord, and the other works as a cop, undercover as a criminal.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: R
Release Date: 2-AUG-2005
Media Type: DVD

The Killer

This 1989 rouser is apocalyptic pulp--the bloodiest, showiest, most shamelessly sentimental specimen of Hong Kong's gangster melodramas. A torch singer named Jennie (Sally Yeh) is accidentally blinded during a slaying in a night club, and Chow Yun-fat's sad-eyed Jeff, a self-lacerating assassin, drags himself out of retirement to take on one last job--rubbing out a major mobster for major bucks--so he can pay for the singer's cornea transplant operation. But Jeff pauses to ferry a wounded child to the hospital during this final outing, and because of this a cop finally gets a good look at him: "He was seen on the job," snarls a saturnine Mr. Big, "and I want him wasted." Armies of thugs converge on the saintly slayer. Some of writer-director John Woo's flourishes are kitsch classics (doves flying upward in a candlelit church), while the action sequences are rapturous. "Life's cheap," a character opines. "It only takes one bullet," but in this case it actually takes about a dozen spewing bullet hits to kill anyone, as soulful triads in mirror shades and duster overcoats blaze away with high-tech weaponry. (A favorite trick involves grasping an enemy by the lapels, pulling him into a waltz embrace, and pumping several slugs into his duodenum.) Danny Lee, Chow's costar in City on Fire, is the intense, young officer who fixates on the killer's contradictory personality. --David Chute

Contract Killer

Black Dragon (aka Miracles)

Superstar JACKIE CHAN (RUSH HOUR SHANGHAI NOON) explodes into action in this story of a country boy who rescues a gangland boss and finds himself thrust from poverty into the center of the wealthy crime world of 1930s Hong Kong! But does his sudden fortune have something to do with the lucky rose a sweet old flower vendor gave him? In this award-winning fast-action comedy full of unbelievable fight sequences Jackie romances a gorgeous nightclub singer battles a rival gang and proves that luck is always on his side.System Requirements:Running Time: 127 Min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: FOREIGN/LATIN Rating: PG-13 UPC: 043396016859 Manufacturer No: 01685

Directed by and starring Jackie Chan, and set in 1930s Hong Kong, Miracles is a gangster film that is equal parts comedy and action film, with a touch of melodrama thrown in for good measure. Chan stars as a young man who rescues a dying crime boss in 1930s Hong Kong. When the boss passes away, he is tapped to become the new leader. He attributes his good luck to an old rose seller and the roses he buys off of her. To pay her back for all of his good fortune, he helps her pretend to be a wealthy socialite, just as she had described herself in letters to her daughter in order to help impress her daughter's wealthy fiancé and not queer their upcoming marriage. The plot is lifted from Frank Capra's Lady for a Day (1933), which Capra remade in 1961 as Pocketful of Miracles. Of course, like all Jackie Chan films, this movie contains more--and more innovative--fight scenes than Capra could ever dream of. Two set pieces in particular are stunning: A big fight in a restaurant and the final battle in the warehouse of a rope factory. Along the way, Chan throws in a musical number inspired by Busby Berkeley and a whole lotta heart, making this a well-rounded and entertaining film, which Chan himself has allegedly referred to as his favorite. --Andy Spletzer

A Better Tomorrow

The John Woo gangster classic that started it all, a romantic, violent, swirlingly stylish melodrama about dueling brothers--with a mesmerizing lead performance by Hong Kong's favorite actor, Chow Yun-Fat. In repose, Chow's sleepy magnetism recalls the glory days of Robert Mitchum, Steve McQueen, and Takakura Ken; when he's stepping high, Chow has a unique, ebullient star presence, a man who embraces life so unselfconsciously that he becomes vulnerable to all kinds of suffering and heartache (he endures masochistic megadoses of violence here). The sequence in which Chow's Mark avenges his betrayed best friend---by blasting his way into, and then out of, a Chinese restaurant, twin .45s blazing---is a swashbuckling standout. Woo's film technique may have been more polished in later efforts, but Tomorrow has a direct emotional power that is still unique. Kung fu star of the 1970s, Ti Lung is also terrific here as the 40ish established mobster, relied upon by all, who allows conflicting loyalties toward Mark and toward his younger brother, now a cop, to undermine the stability of his position. --David Chute

As Tears Go By

Fallen Angels

City on Fire

Although many Hong Kong action fans have criticized Quentin Tarantino for stealing the premise of Reservoir Dogs from Ringo Lam's 1987 hit City on Fire, those accusations do a disservice not only to Tarantino--who vastly improved upon every scene he "borrowed"--but also to Lam and his charismatic star, Chow Yun-fat, whose talents were evident long before they were lured to Hollywood. City on Fire may seem overly familiar now, with its standard undercover-cop-befriending-the-bad-guys scenario, but it remains a first-rate example of Hong Kong urban-action drama, and as a star vehicle for Chow it's a guaranteed crowd-pleaser. The shootouts and chase scenes are as good as anything Hollywood offered in the late '80s, and the chaotic environs of Hong Kong provide an exotic backdrop that further enhances the routine plot line.

Chow plays the undercover cop, still agonizing over his betrayal of a criminal friend during a previous case; when he's asked to infiltrate a gang of violent thieves, his rapport with one of the gangsters threatens the integrity of his assignment. While his superiors battle among themselves (one protects Chow, the other pursues him), director Lam keeps it all ticking along with surefire pacing and an amusing subplot involving Chow's dissatisfied fiancée. The film is fascinating to watch for its obvious precedents to Reservoir Dogs (including a climactic "Mexican standoff" between the untrusting criminals), but it's best appreciated as a showcase for Chow, who's instantly captivating from the moment he appears onscreen. (Note: Disney's DVD release of City on Fire greatly improves upon the poorly translated subtitles of all previous DVD releases.) --Jeff Shannon

Internationally renowned superstar Chow Yun-Fat (CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON; THE REPLACEMENT KILLERS) delivers an electrifying performance in this hard-hitting big-screen thrill ride! An undercover cop sent to infiltrate a notorious crime ring, Ko Chow (Chow Yun-Fat) must replace a fellow officer who was killed in a violent confrontation. But, as he earns the trust of the syndicate, he develops a tight friendship with one of the thieves. Then, when a planned heist turns into a bloody shoot-out with police, suspicions arise about who the informant could be. As friendship and loyalty clash with duty and honor, you'll be riveted by the explosive power of this intensely entertaining motion picutre!

Once a Thief

A romantic art-heist comedy, far lighter in tone than most of director John Woo's work, and in places much sillier. As kids, Chow Yun-fat, Cherie Chung, and Leslie Cheung (A Chinese Ghost Story) were starving street urchins together. They are rescued from the law and trained by a Fagin-like older crook, who transforms them into glossy international cat burglars. The best sections (especially the opening and closing heists) are as masterfully smooth as any action set pieces in the Woo canon. But the tone wavers alarmingly, from the sophisticated (Chow as Cary Grant) to the savage to the sentimental and back again, with a disastrous slapstick coda set in the states, in which the baby food hits the fan. The busy plotting distracts us from a strong theme: the struggle between good and bad father figures (the other is a stalwart cop played by Chu Kong) for the souls of these noble criminals. Not to be confused with the rather limp 1995 remake, produced by Woo for Canadian TV in 1995, with The X-Files' sinister Krycek, Nicholas Lea, surprisingly effective in the Chow part. --David Chute

Action film maestro John Woo (Mission: Impossible 2 Windtalkers) directs this lightning-paced caper of stolen art and broken hearts starring Chow Yun-Fat (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon). Over-the-top action sequences and mind-blowing gunplay get mixed with comedy and romance in this thrilling crowd-pleaser. Joe (Chow) Jim (Leslie Cheung Happy Together) and Cherie (Cherie Chung) have been partners in crime ever since their childhoods spent on the streets stealing to survive. Now world-class art thieves their relationships and lives are put on the line when they agree to one last mission: steal a multi-million dollar painting for a mysterious client who's bent on revenge.System Requirements:Running Time: 108 Min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: R UPC: 043396084254 Manufacturer No: 08425

The Untold Story