''Infernal Affairs'' is a 2002 Hong Kong
action thriller film
Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...
co-directed by
Andrew Lau
Andrew Lau Wai-keung ( zh, t=劉偉強, born 4 April 1960) is a Hong Kong film director, producer, and cinematographer. Lau began his career in the 1980s and 1990s, serving as a cinematographer to filmmakers such as Ringo Lam, Wong Jing and Wo ...
and
Alan Mak. Jointly written by Mak and
Felix Chong
Felix Chong Man-keung () (born December 27, 1968) is a Hong Kong screenwriter, film director and actor.
He is one of the most celebrated screenwriters in Hong Kong and has won several prestigious awards at the Hong Kong Film Awards. Chong is k ...
, it stars
Andy Lau
Andy Lau Tak-wah (; born 27 September 1961) is a Hong Kong actor, singer-songwriter and film producer. He has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maint ...
,
Tony Leung,
Anthony Wong,
Eric Tsang
Eric Tsang Chi-wai (; born 14 April 1953) is a Hong Kong actor, film director, producer, and television host, best known for hosting the variety show '' Super Trio series'' on the Hong Kong television network TVB over 18 years. He currently hol ...
,
Sammi Cheng
Sammi Cheng Sau-man (; born 19 August 1972) is a Hong Kong singer and actress. She is considered one of the most prominent female singers in Hong Kong, with album sales of over million copies throughout Asia. Most notably in the 1990s, she was dub ...
and
Kelly Chen
Kelly Chen Wai-lam (born Vivian Chen Wai-man on 13 September 1972) is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer and actress. She has been referred to as a " Diva of Asia" (). Chen has great success in the East Asian entertainment industry with nearly 20 m ...
. The film follows an undercover Hong Kong Police Force officer who infiltrates a
Triad, and another officer who is secretly a
spy
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
for the same Triad. It is the first in the
''Infernal Affairs'' series and is followed by ''
Infernal Affairs II
''Infernal Affairs II'' is a 2003 Hong Kong crime- action film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It is a prequel to the 2002 film ''Infernal Affairs''. Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang, Edison Chen, Shawn Yue and Chapman To reprise their roles from ...
'' and ''
Infernal Affairs III
''Infernal Affairs III'' is a 2003 Hong Kong crime action film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It is the third and final installment in the ''Infernal Affairs'' film series, and is both a sequel and a semi-prequel to the original film, a ...
''.
The film was selected as the Hong Kong entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the
76th Academy Awards
The 76th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2003 and took place on February 29, 2004, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 ...
but was not nominated.
Miramax Films
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey Weinstein, Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was ...
acquired the United States distribution rights and gave it a limited US theatrical release in 2004.
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...
remade the film in 2006 as ''
The Departed
''The Departed'' is a 2006 American epic crime thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by William Monahan. It is both a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film ''Infernal Affairs'' and also loosely based on the real-life Boston Winter ...
'', which won the
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) since the awards debuted in 1929. This award goes to the producers of the film and is the only category ...
as well as
Academy Award for Best Director
The Academy Award for Best Director (officially known as the Academy Award of Merit for Directing) is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given in honor of a film director who has exhibi ...
, Scorsese’s first and only Oscar in his career, and
Best Adapted Screenplay. In 2017, an Indian remake of the film was also planned.
A 4K remaster of the
''Infernal Affairs'' trilogy was released on 12th December 2022, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of ''Infernal Affairs''.
Plot
Hon Sam, a
Triad boss, sends Lau Kin-ming, a young gangster, to the police academy to serve as his
spy
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
in the
Hong Kong Police Force
The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest Hong Kong Disciplined Services, disciplined service under the Security Bureau (Hong Kong), Security Bureau of Hong Kong. The Royal Hong Kong Po ...
. Around the same time, Chan Wing-Yan, a young police cadet, is seemingly expelled from the police academy. In reality, Chan has secretly become an undercover cop reporting only to Superintendent Wong Chi-shing, who sends him to infiltrate Hon's triad. Over the course of ten years, Chan experiences great stress from his undercover work while Lau quickly rises through the ranks in the police force, eventually becoming a Senior Inspector. Wong and his team interrupt a deal between Hon and a Thai cocaine dealer after receiving a tip-off from Chan. However, Lau alerts Hon, giving him enough time to get his henchmen to dispose of the evidence.
After this incident, both Wong and Hon realise that they have a spy within their own organisation, placing them in a race against time to find out who the spy is. Chan nearly finds out Lau's identity when he tries to follow Lau after seeing him talking to Hon in a cinema; Lau manages to get away before Chan could see his face. By this time, both Chan and Lau are struggling with their double identities – Chan starts losing faith in himself as a cop after being a gangster for ten years; Lau becomes more accustomed to the life of a police officer and wants to end his association with the triad. At their next meeting on a rooftop, Wong wants to pull Chan out of undercover work for fear of his safety.
However, Hon, who knows about the meeting from Lau, sends "Crazy" Keung and other henchmen to confront them. Chan escapes from the building while Wong tries to distract the gangsters and ends up being thrown off the roof to his death. Just then, the police show up and a shootout ensues. Keung, not knowing that Chan is the mole, drives them away from the scene but dies from a gunshot wound later. When the news report that Keung is actually an undercover cop, Hon assumes that he was the spy and that Chan killed him to protect himself. Lau retrieves Wong's cell phone and contacts Chan; both of them agree to foil a drug deal by Hon. The plan succeeds and many of Hon's men are arrested, while Lau betrays and kills Hon.
Everything seems to have returned to normal – Chan can revert to his true identity as a cop, while Lau has erased his criminal connections by eliminating the triad. However, back at the police headquarters, Chan discovers that Lau was the spy and leaves immediately. Realising what has happened, Lau erases Chan's file from the police database and makes a copy on his personal computer, intending to use the proof of Chan's identity as leverage, so that he would not reveal his real identity. Chan sends to Lau a compact disc with a recording that Hon kept between himself and Lau. The disc inadvertently ends up in the hands of Lau's girlfriend, Mary. Chan and Lau meet on the same rooftop where Wong was killed earlier. Chan disarms Lau and holds his pistol to Lau's head; Lau states calmly that he "wants to be a good person" now, but Chan rejects Lau's plea to help him conceal his criminal past.
Inspector "Big B" arrives on the scene shortly and orders Chan to release Lau. Chan holds Lau as a hostage at gunpoint and backs into an elevator, but gets shot in the head by "Big B" when he moves his head from behind Lau. "Big B" then reveals to Lau that he is also a spy planted by Hon in the police force, and assures Lau that he has destroyed evidence of Lau's criminal associations. When they take the elevator to the ground floor, Lau kills "Big B". Lee discovers records that prove Chan's identity as an undercover cop, while "Big B" is identified as the spy in the police force and the case is closed. Lau salutes Chan at his funeral, with Cheung and Lee present as well. A flashback reaffirms the point that Lau wished he had taken a different route in life.
Cast
*
Andy Lau
Andy Lau Tak-wah (; born 27 September 1961) is a Hong Kong actor, singer-songwriter and film producer. He has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maint ...
as Senior Inspector Lau Kin-ming (劉健明), Hon's spy in the police force.
**
Edison Chen
Edison Chen Koon-hei (, born Chen Hing-wah on 7 October 1980) is a Canadian-born Hong Kong actor, singer, rapper, fashion designer and entrepreneur. Chen is the co-founder of CLOT, a Hong Kong-based streetwear and fashion label. Debuting in 19 ...
as young Lau Kin-ming
*
Tony Leung as Chan Wing-yan (陳永仁), an undercover cop in Hon's triad.
**
Shawn Yue
Shawn Yue Man-lok (born 13 November 1981) is a Hong Kong actor and singer. A former model, he has starred in many films, such as '' Jiang Hu'', '' Infernal Affairs II'', the ''Love in the Buff'' film series, '' Mad World'' and '' The Brink'', and ...
as young Chan Wing-yan
*
Anthony Wong as Superintendent Wong Chi-shing (黃志誠), Chan's superior.
*
Eric Tsang
Eric Tsang Chi-wai (; born 14 April 1953) is a Hong Kong actor, film director, producer, and television host, best known for hosting the variety show '' Super Trio series'' on the Hong Kong television network TVB over 18 years. He currently hol ...
as Hon Sam (韓琛), the triad boss and main antagonist.
*
Chapman To
use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) -->
, death_place =
, death_cause =
, body_discovered =
, resting_place =
, resting_place_coordinate ...
as "Silly" Keung (傻強), Hon's henchman.
*
Gordon Lam
Gordon Lam Ka-tung (林家棟; born 21 September 1967) is a Hong Kong actor, film producer and screenwriter. Initially known for his supporting roles in films directed by Andrew Lau and Johnnie To, Lam eventually became a lead actor in the Ho ...
as Inspector B (大B; Big B), Lau's subordinate who is also a mole in the police force.
*
Sammi Cheng
Sammi Cheng Sau-man (; born 19 August 1972) is a Hong Kong singer and actress. She is considered one of the most prominent female singers in Hong Kong, with album sales of over million copies throughout Asia. Most notably in the 1990s, she was dub ...
as Mary, Lau's fiancée.
*
Kelly Chen
Kelly Chen Wai-lam (born Vivian Chen Wai-man on 13 September 1972) is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer and actress. She has been referred to as a " Diva of Asia" (). Chen has great success in the East Asian entertainment industry with nearly 20 m ...
as Lee Sum-yee (李心兒), Chan's psychiatrist.
*
Berg Ng
Berg Ng Ting-yip (born 12 December 1960) is a Hong Kong actor. He is best known for his role as Inspector Cheung in the 2002 crime thriller film '' Infernal Affairs''.
Filmography
Television
* '' The Undercover Agents'' (1984)
* '' 101 Citize ...
as Senior Inspector Cheung (張Sir), Wong's subordinate.
*
Wan Chi-keung as Officer Leung (梁Sir), the chief superintendent of the internal affairs department.
*
Dion Lam
Dion Lam (林迪安; Lam Dik-On) is a Hong Kong action choreographer and actor.
Filmography
* 1980 ''The Hangman''
* 1982 ''Energetic 21''
* 1983 ''Crazy Blood''
* 1988 ''Mistaken Identity''
* 1989 '' The Killer''
* 1989 ''Ghost Ballroom''
* 19 ...
as Del Piero (迪路), Hon's henchman.
*
Elva Hsiao as May, Chan's ex-girlfriend.
* Hui Kam-fung as Officer Yip (葉Sir), Chan's cadet school principal
Alternate ending
An alternate ending for the film was shot in order to comply with Article 25 (7) of the Chinese Film Administration Regulations specifying that films cannot propagate obscenity, gambling or violence, or abet to commit crimes. In the original (Hong Kong) ending, Lau concealed his true identity as a Triad spy and identified himself as a police officer to avoid legislative punishment. Therefore, the original ending version promotes criminal activity and injustice, and an alternate ending was filmed in order to access the market of mainland China. In the alternate ending, inspector Cheung discovered evidence of Lau’s criminal activity and immediately arrested Lau outside the elevator. This alternate ending was shown in mainland China and Malaysia.
[H. Y. F. Choy (2007) “Schizophrenic Hong Kong: Postcolonial Identity Crisis in the Infernal Affairs Trilogy”. Transtext(e)s Transcultures. 3: 52–66. https://doi.org/10.4000/transtexts.138]
Analysis
Postcolonial identity crisis in Hong Kong
In ''Infernal Affairs'', the
identity crisis
In psychology, identity crisis is a stage theory of identity development where it involves resolution of a conflict over the 8 stages of the lifespan.(Schultz, 216) The term was coined by German psychologist Erik Erikson.
The stage of psychosoci ...
suffered by both Chan and Lau as a mole is hinting at the schizophrenic struggle of Hong Kong residents, who faced both the
colonization
Colonization, or colonisation, constitutes large-scale population movements wherein migrants maintain strong links with their, or their ancestors', former country – by such links, gain advantage over other inhabitants of the territory. When ...
by the British and the
reunification
A political union is a type of political entity which is composed of, or created from, smaller polities, or the process which achieves this. These smaller polities are usually called federated states and federal territories in a federal governm ...
with Mainland China. Specifically, under
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CC ...
’s "One Country, Two System policy", the duplicity, unsettling, and uncertain nature of the future of Hong Kong residents is tightly echoed in Chan and Lau’s character developments. Scholar Howard Y. F. Choy further claimed that “this postcolonial (re)turn is actually more a recolonization than a decolonization of the capitalist Cantonese city by the mainland Mandarin master.”
Quotes from Buddha
''Infernal Affairs'' opens with
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
classic Nirvana Sutra Verse Nineteen, stating that “The worst of the Eight Hells is called Continuous Hell. It has the meaning of Continuous Suffering. Thus the name.” The film also closes with another quote from
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
, stating that “He who is in Continuous Hell never dies. Longevity is a big hardship in Continuous Hell.” In
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
, Continuous Hell is also termed The
Avici, where one can never reincarnate nor be relieved from guilt and suffering. This concept of timeless, placeless, and endless suffering especially applies to the character Lau throughout the trilogy, who infinitely bears the burden of self-betrayal (serves as a mole), loss of family and friendship, and unsettledness.
Reception
Box office
Upon its premiere in Hong Kong, ''Infernal Affairs'' grossed $160,356 during the opening day (January 16–19). In total, the film grossed $7,035,649 during its run in Hong Kong theatres. The film was then released across Asia, where it grossed a further $169,659 from theatre receipts. In 2016, South Korean theaters re-released the film, which went on to gross $128,026 across three weeks. The total lifetime gross of the film in Korea is $977,903.
In total, worldwide, the film grossed $8,836,958 across release in both domestic markets and European theatres which displayed the film.
Critical response
On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, ''Infernal Affairs'' has an approval rating of 94% based on reviews from 64 critics, with an average rating of 7.50/10. The consensus from the site reads as "Smart and engrossing, this is one of Hong Kong's better cop thrillers." On
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the film has a score of 75 out of 100 based on reviews from 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". It was ranked as the 62nd Best Movie of 2004, 86th Most Discussed Movie of 2004, and the 95th Most Shared Movie of 2004.
Film critic
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
gave the film a three-out-of-four star rating and described ''Infernal Affairs'' as offering "rare emotional depth." In his words, "The movie pays off in a kind of emotional complexity rarely seen in crime movies. I cannot reveal what happens but will urge you to consider the thoughts of two men who finally confront their own real identities—in the person of the other character." ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' reviewer Elvis Mitchell was so enraptured with the film that he stated that "''Infernal Affairs'' is so beautifully shot that the images occasionally distract you from the condensed policier plot."
Accolades
''Infernal Affairs'' played an integral role in
Andrew Lau
Andrew Lau Wai-keung ( zh, t=劉偉強, born 4 April 1960) is a Hong Kong film director, producer, and cinematographer. Lau began his career in the 1980s and 1990s, serving as a cinematographer to filmmakers such as Ringo Lam, Wong Jing and Wo ...
's breakout films in entering the 21st century. Being the most critically acclaimed film of his to date, it was ranked No. 30 in ''
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
'' Magazine's "The 100 Best Films of World Cinema" in 2010.
''Infernal Affairs'' gained significant traction during its festival run as it was nominated for sixteen awards during the
22nd Hong Kong Film Awards, winning seven of those categories. It also won the Best Picture at the
40th Golden Horse Awards
The 40th Golden Horse Awards (Mandarin:第40屆金馬獎) took place on December 13, 2003 at Tainan Municipal Cultural Center in Tainan, Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction ...
, the 8th
Golden Bauhinia Awards
Golden Bauhinia Awards () is a Hong Kong film award organised by the Hong Kong Film Critics Association. Its first award presentation ceremony took place in 1996.
The award attracted controversy in 2007, when ten nominations were given to Pang ...
, and the Best Foreign Language Film at the 46th
Blue Ribbon Awards
The are film-specific prizes awarded solely by movie critics and writers in Tokyo, Japan.
The awards were established in 1950 by which is composed of film correspondents from seven Tokyo-based sports newspapers. In 1961, the six major Japanes ...
.
Eventually, ''Infernal Affairs'' would spark the creation of two more films. With ''
Infernal Affairs II
''Infernal Affairs II'' is a 2003 Hong Kong crime- action film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It is a prequel to the 2002 film ''Infernal Affairs''. Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang, Edison Chen, Shawn Yue and Chapman To reprise their roles from ...
'' getting 11 nominations and ''
Infernal Affairs III
''Infernal Affairs III'' is a 2003 Hong Kong crime action film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It is the third and final installment in the ''Infernal Affairs'' film series, and is both a sequel and a semi-prequel to the original film, a ...
'' getting 7 nominations during the
23rd Hong Kong Film Awards, with ''Infernal Affairs II'' winning Best Original Film Song.
Awards and nominations
Music
The original film score for ''Infernal Affairs'' was written and performed by
Chan Kwong-wing.
The theme song, ''Infernal Affairs'' (無間道), was composed by Ronald Ng, lyrics provided by
Albert Leung
Albert Leung (born 7 December 1961, ) is a lyricist and writer based in Hong Kong.
Education
Leung attended all-boy secondary schools at Chan Sui Ki (La Salle) College and La Salle College. He received a bachelor of arts in translation from th ...
, and performed in Cantonese and Mandarin by Andy Lau and Tony Leung.
Although not included in the soundtrack,
Tsai Chin Tsai Chin may refer to:
* Tsai Chin (actress) (born 1933), actress from Shanghai, also known as Irene Chow
* Tsai Chin (singer) (born 1957), Taiwanese singer
{{Hndis ...
's (蔡琴) song "Forgotten Times" (《被遺忘的時光》) features prominently in this film as a recurring element of its storyline, and also in its sequels.
Development
Script
Writer
Alan Mak has long wanted to write a story about police and gangsters. The script of ''Infernal Affairs'' was inspired by
John Woo
John Woo Yu-Sen SBS (; born September 22, 1946) is a Hong Kong filmmaker, known as a highly-influential figure in the action film genre. He was a pioneer of heroic bloodshed films (a crime action film genre involving Chinese triads) and the gun ...
's ''
Face/Off
''Face/Off'' is a 1997 American science fiction action thriller film directed by John Woo, written by Mike Werb and Michael Colleary, and starring John Travolta and Nicolas Cage.
The first Hollywood film in which Woo was given major creativ ...
'' (1997) but Mak knew that faces cannot swap in the real world. Instead, he focuses on the exchange of identity and psychology between the two leads
and delves into human nature and the human heart. In the process of Mak's creation, his good friend
Felix Chong
Felix Chong Man-keung () (born December 27, 1968) is a Hong Kong screenwriter, film director and actor.
He is one of the most celebrated screenwriters in Hong Kong and has won several prestigious awards at the Hong Kong Film Awards. Chong is k ...
also encouraged and supported him. The script, written by Mak and revised by Chong, took three years to complete.
The dialogue in the famous rooftop showdown was created on the spot by Felix Chong and Tony Leung, with Chong playing Andy Lau's part. The script originally included a typical shootout in the third act, but Leung insisted on turning it into a dialogue scene.
Gordon Lam
Gordon Lam Ka-tung (林家棟; born 21 September 1967) is a Hong Kong actor, film producer and screenwriter. Initially known for his supporting roles in films directed by Andrew Lau and Johnnie To, Lam eventually became a lead actor in the Ho ...
did not receive the full script and did not know his character was also a triad mole until the final scene.
Investment
The script for ''Infernal Affairs'' originally belonged to Andy Lau's
Teamwork Motion Pictures, but entangled amidst a lawsuit, the company was unable to produce the film. In addition, the creative team could not find investors because other studios at the time thought that an undercover film wasn't novel enough to make money. Eventually,
Andrew Lau
Andrew Lau Wai-keung ( zh, t=劉偉強, born 4 April 1960) is a Hong Kong film director, producer, and cinematographer. Lau began his career in the 1980s and 1990s, serving as a cinematographer to filmmakers such as Ringo Lam, Wong Jing and Wo ...
made a hopeless bid and showed the script to
John Chong
John Chong Ching is a Hong Kong film producer and presenter. He is one of the most successful producers of Hong Kong cinema beginning with the Golden Age of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan in the 1970s and 1980s. He is now a veteran film producer of M ...
at
Media Asia Entertainment Group
Media Asia Entertainment Group (), Media Asia Group (, ), is a Hong Kong production company and film distributor for films made in Hong Kong and throughout China. It is a subsidiary of Lai Sun Development Company Ltd.
History
Headquartered ...
. To his surprise Chong and company chairman
Peter Lam
Peter Lam Kin-ngok, GBS (, born 7 August 1957) is a Hong Kong businessman and billionaire.
Peter Lam is the son of the late industrialist tycoon Lim Por-yen and his second wife U Po-chu. Peter is Chairman of Lai Sun Development Company, Lai ...
saw potential in the story. Lam proceeded to invest HK $20 million in the film, under the condition that Andy Lau will star the film.
Adaptations
With star power, visual allure, and an engaging script, Andrew Lau and Alan Mak’s ''Infernal Affairs'' /《無間道》(2002) did very well critically and financially, spawned two sequels and a television series, and attracted the attention of Hollywood.
In 2003,
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
's
production company
A production company, production house, production studio, or a production team is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and ...
Plan B Entertainment
Plan B Entertainment, Inc., more commonly known as Plan B, is an American production company founded in November in 2001 by Brad Grey, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston and Kristin Hahn. In 2005, after Pitt and Aniston divorced, Grey became the CEO o ...
acquired the rights for a Hollywood remake, named ''
The Departed
''The Departed'' is a 2006 American epic crime thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by William Monahan. It is both a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film ''Infernal Affairs'' and also loosely based on the real-life Boston Winter ...
'', which was directed by
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...
, and starred
Leonardo DiCaprio,
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North Americ ...
,
Jack Nicholson
John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. In many of his films, he played rebels against the social structure. He received numerous ...
, and
Mark Wahlberg
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971), former stage name Marky Mark, is an American actor, businessman, and former rapper. He has received multiple accolades, including a BAFTA Award, and nominations for two Academy Awards, three ...
, set in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, Massachusetts, roughly based on the life of famed Boston mobster
James "Whitey" Bulger
James Joseph "Whitey" Bulger Jr. (; September 3, 1929 – October 30, 2018) was an American organized crime boss who led the Winter Hill Gang in the Winter Hill neighborhood of Somerville, Massachusetts, a city directly northwest of Bos ...
. ''The Departed'' was released on 6 October 2006 and won the
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) since the awards debuted in 1929. This award goes to the producers of the film and is the only category ...
. Andrew Lau, the co-director of ''Infernal Affairs'', who was interviewed by Hong Kong newspaper ''
Apple Daily
''Apple Daily'' ( zh, link=no, 蘋果日報) was a popular tabloid published in Hong Kong from 1995 to 2021. Founded by Jimmy Lai, it was one of the best-selling Chinese language newspapers in Hong Kong. '', said: "Of course I think the version I made is better, but the Hollywood version is pretty good too.
corsesemade the Hollywood version more attuned to American culture." Andy Lau, one of the main actors in ''Infernal Affairs'', when asked how the movie compares to the original, said: "''The Departed'' was too long and it felt as if Hollywood had combined all three ''Infernal Affairs'' movies together." Lau pointed out that the remake featured some of the "golden quotes" of the original but did have much more swearing. He ultimately rated ''The Departed'' 8/10 and said that the Hollywood remake is worth a view, though according to Lau's spokeswoman Alice Tam, he felt that the combination of the two female characters into one in ''The Departed'' was not as good as the original storyline.
Lau, Tsang, and
Jacky Cheung
Jacky Cheung Hok-yau (born 10 July 1961) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. Dubbed the " God of Songs", he is regarded as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Hong Kong pop music. Cheung is known for his technically skilled vocals, lengthy tours, and ...
parodied the cinema scene to promote the
Hong Kong Film Awards
The Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA; ), founded in 1982, is an annual film awards ceremony in Hong Kong. The ceremonies are typically in April. The awards recognise achievement in various aspects of filmmaking, such as directing, screenwriting, ...
. Lau and Tsang, in their respective characters, go through the scene where they meet to gather info on the undercover cop amongst Hon Sam's gang. Lau Kin-ming asks Hon, "Why do we always meet in a cinema?", to which Hon answers, "It's quiet. No one comes to movies". Cheung comes out from the shadows behind them and says, "I don't know...quite a few people watch movies" and we see a slew of Hong Kong celebrities watching various clips of Hong Kong films on the screen. Originally Tony Leung was going to appear but scheduling conflicts led to the recasting.
The 2003
TVB
Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and ...
spoof celebrating the
Chinese New Year called ''Mo Ba To'' (吐氣羊眉賀新春之無霸道), the 2004 comedy film ''
Love Is a Many Stupid Thing
''Love Is a Many Stupid Thing'' is a 2004 comedy film written, produced and directed by Wong Jing and starring Eric Tsang, Chapman To, Natalis Chan, Shawn Yue, Lam Chi-chung and Raymond Wong Ho-yin. The film is a parody of the 2002 hit film ''In ...
'' by
Wong Jing
Wong Jing ( born 3 May 1955) is a Hong Kong film director, Film producer, producer, actor, News presenter, presenter, and screenwriter. A prolific filmmaker with strong instincts for crowd-pleasing and publicity, Wong Jing played a prominent ...
, and the 2004 TVB television drama ''
Shades of Truth
''Shades of Truth'' (Traditional Chinese: 水滸無間道; literally ''Water Margin's Unceasing Path'') is a 25-episode television comedy-drama from Hong Kong. Produced by Siu Hin-fai, the drama is a TVB production. The story is a parody on the ...
'' were re-writings based on the plot of the film.
In Taiwan SHODA (劉裕銘) and a secondary school student Blanka (布蘭卡) cut and rearranged the original film and inserted new sound tracks to produce their videos ''Infernal Affairs CD pro2'' and ''Infernal Affairs iPod'' on the web. The videos had many views and both producers removed their videos after receiving
cease and desist
A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...
letters from the Group Power Workshop Limited (群體工作室), the Taiwan distributor of the film.
Media Asia released a limited edition of eight-DVD set of the ''Infernal Affairs'' trilogy in an Ultimate Collectible Boxset (無間道終極珍藏DVD系列(8DVD套裝)) on 20 December 2004. Features included an online game and two Chinese fictional novels of the film series by Lee Muk-Tung (李牧童), titled 無間道I+II小說 and 無間道III終極無間小說.
The hi-fi shop scene was later recreated with additions of excerpts of the film to encourage businesses to join the
Quality Tourism Services Scheme in Hong Kong.
In 2009, a Korean remake ''
City of Damnation
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
'', which was directed by
Kim Dong-won was released on 22 January 2009. In 2009, a Telugu remake ''
Homam'', which directed and acted by JD Chakravarthy along with Jagapathi Babu was released and became a notable movie. In 2012, ''Double Face'' (
ダブルフェイス), a Japanese television remake starring
Hidetoshi Nishijima was released by
TBS and
WOWOW. The production aired in two parts: "Police Impersonation" on WOWOW and "Undercover" on TBS.
A TV series remake debuted in 2018 produced by Media Asia and former TVB producer Tommy Leung. The series, which is titled ''Infernal Affairs'' like the film, stars
Gallen Lo
Gallen Lo Ka-leung () is a Hong Kong actor and singer who primarily acts in television series. He is sometimes credited as King Gallen or Law Ka-Leung.
Career
Lo started his television career in 1984 at ATV. He received short-term success in a ...
,
Damian Lau
Damian Lau Chung-yan (born 14 October 1949) is a Hong Kong film and television actor, executive producer and film director. Lau has starred in many television drama series of various genres, produced by Hong Kong's TVB and ATV.
Biography
...
,
Paul Chun
Paul Chun (; born 26 June 1945) is a Hong Kong actor. He has appeared in more than 130 films and television series since 1949. In 1966, he appeared in ''The Sand Pebbles'', an American film produced and directed by Robert Wise.
Early life
He wa ...
,
Lo Hoi-pang
Lo Hoi-pang (born 21 December 1941) is a Hong Kong actor and singer. Lo attended TVB's Training Classes in 1973. Among his classmates are Chow Yun-fat and Ng Man-tat. Lo won the 2012 31st Hong Kong Film Awards for the Best Supporting Actor c ...
,
Eric Tsang
Eric Tsang Chi-wai (; born 14 April 1953) is a Hong Kong actor, film director, producer, and television host, best known for hosting the variety show '' Super Trio series'' on the Hong Kong television network TVB over 18 years. He currently hol ...
,
Derek Kok
Derek Kok Jing-hung (, born 18 November 1964) is a Hong Kong actor who had worked for TVB from 1986 to 2015. He filmed over 70 dramas. He is specialised in action and Chinese Kung Fu performance.
Career
His career started when he entered the N ...
,
Dominic Lam
Dominic Lam Ka-wah (Traditional Chinese: Simplified Chinese: ; born 2 April 1957) is an Hong Kong Canadian actor and radio personality for Fairchild Radio in Richmond Hill, Canada. His acting career spans four decades, beginning with his tele ...
,
Toby Leung
Toby Leung Ching-kei ( Chinese: 梁靖琪, born 27 February 1983) is Cantopop singer and actress from Hong Kong. She entered the music industry in 2004 when the MusicNationGroup discovered her talent. Together with Macy Chan, Elise Liu (廖 ...
and
Yuen Biao
Yuen Biao (born Ha Lingchun; 26 July 1957) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist and stuntman. He specialises in acrobatics and Chinese martial arts and has also worked on over 80 films as actor, stuntman and action choreographer. He was one ...
. The story takes place years after the films' events, with some minor characters reprising their roles alongside a new cast. The TV series uses the same concept as the film, but with an entirely new story and characters, and the setting expanded beyond Hong Kong to include Thailand and Shenzhen. It stretched through three seasons with each season consisting of 12 episodes.
Hindi remake is going to be a joint development between Warner Bros. India and Mumbai – based banner Azure and is set for a remake for a two-picture deal
The success of the film inspired many genres, including an open-world video game from
United Front Games
United Front Games, Inc. was a Canadian video game development studio based in Vancouver. They created titles for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows. They are the dev ...
titled ''
Sleeping Dogs'' (or ''
True Crime: Hong Kong'' before canceled by
Activision Blizzard
Activision Blizzard, Inc. is an American video game holding company based in Santa Monica, California. It was founded in July 2008 through the merger of Activision, Inc. (the publicly traded parent company of Activision Publishing) and Viven ...
in 2011), with the protagonist of the story infiltrating the criminal underworld as an undercover police.
Influence and Artistry
The Influence of ''Infernal Affairs'' on Hong Kong Cinema
''Infernal Affairs'' is the turning point of Hong Kong film aesthetics. Before ''Infernal Affairs'', there were few serious and artistic works in Hong Kong films, but they basically had the following characteristics:
1. The relative roughness of the production was compensated for by the skill of the practitioners
2. Hong Kong films incorporate a lot of dramatic elements.
After the release of ''Infernal Affairs'', Hong Kong films began to pay attention to the plot and picture.
The Artistry of the ''Infernal Affairs'' title
"Insanity" refers to the Insanity Hell, and in the Buddhist view, those who enter the Insanity Hell are extremely sinful. Those who enter the Infinite Hell never have any hope of relief, and they have no other feeling out of suffering. Those who enter the Infinite Hell will forever be tortured in Hell as retribution for the wickedness of their previous lives. The title perfectly sums up the plot described in ''Infernal Affairs''. Two identities should not belong to their own people, as they live in a similar hell of the environment; the dream is afraid of others who expose their undercover identity. Both of them are trying to use their own hated identities to hide their real identity. Their position in tandem with their identity force them to be tortured all the time, which perfectly fits the Buddhist-influenced title.
See also
*
''Infernal Affairs'' film series
*
Cinema of Hong Kong
The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of ...
*
List of Hong Kong films
This is a list of films produced in Hong Kong ordered by decade and year of release in separate pages. For film set in Hong Kong and produced elsewhere see ''List of films set in Hong Kong''.
1909–1949
*List of Hong Kong films before 1950
1 ...
*
Andy Lau filmography
*
List of films featuring surveillance
There is a significant body of films that feature surveillance as a theme or as a plot arc. These are a number of these films produced in the United States and other countries.
List of films
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
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*
External l ...
*
List of films set in Hong Kong
While most of local Hong Kong movies were filmed locally, several foreign movies were also, at least partly, set in Hong Kong. The following is a list of foreign movies set in Hong Kong.
Foreign movies
*''Godzilla vs. Kong'' (2021)
*''Hello, Love, ...
References
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Internal Affairs
2002 films
2000s action thriller films
2000s crime thriller films
Hong Kong New Wave films
Hong Kong action thriller films
Hong Kong crime thriller films
Hong Kong police films
2000s Cantonese-language films
Films directed by Andrew Lau
Best Film HKFA
Films set in Hong Kong
Films set in 2002
Films shot in Hong Kong
Films whose director won the Best Director Golden Horse Award
Police detective films
Triad films
Basic Pictures films
Media Asia films
Films directed by Alan Mak
Chinese New Year films
Fictional rivalries
2000s Hong Kong films