Review of Infernal Affairs (2002) by Kenneth L — 13 Dec 2010

This is the Hong Kong movie on which Martin Scorsese's The Departed was based. It's a sleek, well-made thriller, and The Departed follows it really quite closely. Overall, I would have to say that The Departed is the better movie, though it seems unfair to compare them since The Departed basically borrowed everything that was good in this movie and built on it a bit more.

The Departed fleshed out the characters' personalities and backstories more thoroughly and had better dialogue and a slightly better ending, but in every other respect, the two movies are just about equal.

Scorsese even borrowed this film's distinctive visual aesthetic, with cinematography full of blues and grays, and glass walls all over the place. Tong Leung is reserved but effective as the cop undercover as a gangster, and Andy Lau is cold and stone-faced as the gangster undercover as a cop.

It's a bit more sentimental and a bit less blunt than The Departed, and unfortunately there is no equivalent to the excellent Mark Wahlberg character. In terms of key plot points, however, The Departed followed this movie to the letter.

It's worth seeing if you really like police thrillers or are interested in how remakes relate to originals. If you haven't already seen The Departed, see this one first to give it a fair shot, then see The Departed later.