Review of Infernal Affairs (2002) by Karen L — 09 Aug 2008

As much of a crisis as the HK industry might have entered in the late 90's, they still know when to pull out great stuff like this one. Hardly the most polished script you could find, but the always sharp direction, and a well rounded cast makes it impossible to lost interest in what's happening.

And no, I won't go endlessly with comparisions between this and the remake. Infernal Affairs deserves it's own recognition as a stand alone film. Everyone from Andy Lau, Anthony Wong, Tony Leung all the way to Eric Tsang show what acting is really about. They are popular actors in Asia yes, but they also happen to have actual acting skills, becoming a big part of what made this film work so well.