All screenings are at Rialto Cinemas on Monday nights at 6:30pm
Mon 2 March:Screening: Monday 13 July, 6:30pm
Andrew Lau & Alan Mak | Hong Kong | 2002 | M low level violence
Fans of Hong Kong action extravaganzas and genre first-timers alike will dig this cops ‘n’ robbers spectacle directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak, with help from ‘visual consultant’ Christopher Doyle (Wong Kar-wai’s frequent cinematographer).
Emoting mad internal torment are Andy Lau as a cop who’s secretly a gangster and Tony Leung as a gangster who’s secretly a cop. Assorted girlfriend roles are filled by H.K. megastars Sammi Cheng and Kelly Chen, with the omnipresent Eric Tsang (as a triad boss) and the immortal Anthony Wong (as the police commander) rounding out the rest of the cast.
New-school plot devices – there are so many high-tech shenanigans that the characters’ cell phones should be probably billed as costars – mix with classic noir elements such as clandestine meetings on rooftops and in movie theaters. Even the occasional overblown emotional note won’t prevent you from having fun with this one. — Cheryl Eddy, San Francisco Bay Guardian
(100 minutes, In Cantonese with English subtitles, DVD)