This week, I will be sharing my insights about the film Infernal Affairs, directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. Similar to last week’s movie, Hero, Infernal Affairs also had many big names of the Hong Kong film industry that starred in the film.
Personally, I really love watching Cantonese films although I can only understand bits of the spoken language. Nonetheless, Infernal Affairs is typical Hong Kong police/crime/triads type of film, but this time with a rather unique plot.
To put it simply, a cop, Yan (Tony Leung) was placed undercover into a triad gang and a member of the triad, Lau (Andy Lau) was ordered to be a part of the police force. The roles of the undercover cop and the triad member was to provide knowledge and intelligence to their bosses. Ultimately, they both found out about each other which resulted in one of them being killed.
What I felt that was special about the film was the moral dilemmas and emotions faced by the characters throughout the story. I also felt that the film relates to society on how people actually are and what they are willing to do to achieve it. Also, on how people around you will influence you.
One situation was how a member of the triad, Lau, wanted to be a ‘good guy’ and remained in the police force even after he was found out by Yan. To be able to get rid of his past, he had to kill his own boss, the leader of the triads, he also had to kill a fellow member of the triad who saved him from Yan.
I felt that this showed how some people in society are, that they are even willing to put down someone to achieve what they want despite of how that someone has helped him/her.
Other than Lau being a mole in the police force for over 10 years, there were also scenes where Lau’s fiancee indirectly spoke about him being good or bad (obviously wanting him to be good). Lau is also shown to be well-dressed and groomed throughout the film whereas Yan looked rugged.
I felt that this showed that the people around you will greatly influence the way you think, how you dress or how you act – a reflection of society today.
In conclusion, this film also reflected a modern and improving Hong Kong (tall buildings, modern houses) unlike older Hong Kong films where people were portrayed as unrefined and houses were small and poorly furnished. I enjoyed the movie but I felt that there were some gaps in the story that needed filling.
I Ken Reviews 
It’s true and scary that people would do such a thing to others – to put someone down in pursuit of what they want to achieve in life. I think that at times, such circumstances are shaped by the choices that they have made previously that led them to such a predicament or even the fact that they might not have had a choice in the first place. In turn, it becomes a vicious cycle that they have to live with at the end of the day. To get ahead of someone, there’s always underhanded trickery involved which the film really captured and begs the question of: Are you really able to right the wrong with wrong? (A little like double negatives brings a positive?)
LikeLike
Your point that this movie exhibited how much the people around us can influence our decisions and attitudes towards life is agreeable. This film does reflect a lot of realities in Hong Kong, especially when Ming was travelling to Hong Kong’s central district. The stark differences between the streets and the upper-middle class environment was perhaps to mirror the gap between those who are still struggling to make it to the upper-middle class and those who have already achieved that financial position. It is also very true that people tend to treat you based on the way you carry yourself. Those deemed “better” than others within a society usually receive preferential treatment and respect, as can be seen from the movie at times.
LikeLike
I don’t understand a single word of Cantonese, but like you, that has never stopped me from watching and thoroughly enjoying them. Especially when star-studded films like these are released, one can definitely enjoy a moving performance with so much talent involved. I agree that the film really emphasizes how people are willing to climb over the head of others to achieve success. As they say, it’s a dog eat dog world afterall. I also think it shows how one can never trust the external facade of those around us, as it may all be an act to hide the many skeletons in our closets.
LikeLike