Infernal Affairs review

aelst's review

Hong Kong movie with a police mole infiltrating triad gang and several triad gang members infiltrating the police force. It's an interesting concept having so many moles in a movie. I started getting confused because I had to read subtitles instead of watching and trying to recognise the actors - their voices all sound the same to me. The movie is a serious movie, and we get to see thoughts, actions and motivations behind some of the moles. The female actors have useless roles.

3 out of 5 stars.

ratbag's review

Tony Leung is suitably cast as the humble triad mole, as is Andy Lau, the poser cop mole with questionable morals.

To fully enjoy this movie, one will need to be familiar with the Hong Kong filmic devices, filmic and acting styles, as they are quite different to the usual Hollywood staples. The setting is usually gritty, action shots are highly stylised but chaotic, and the emotional conflict usually internalised, but sometimes exaggerated.

Unlike other Hong Kong movies, "Infernal Affairs" does not feature as much over-the-top, excessively violent scenes, nor does it have too much action scenes. Most of the nail-biting in the film arises from the near-exposure of the moles. More complex than your usual good guys vs. bad guys film, "Infernal Affairs" is quite enjoyable, and is one of the better films from Hong Kong in a long time.