''Triangle'' () is a 2007 Hong Kong action film produced and directed by

Tsui Hark Tsui Hark (, vi, Từ Khắc, born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong film director, producer and screenwriter. Tsui has directed several influential Hong Kong films such as '' Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain'' (1983), the ...

, Ringo Lam, and Johnnie To. The film's title refers to both the acclaimed trio of filmmakers and to the uneasy brotherhood of the film's three protagonists. ''Triangle'' tells one story which is told in three thirty-minute segments, independently helmed by the three directors. It stars

Louis Koo Louis Koo Tin-lok ( zh, t=古天樂; born 21 October 1970) is a Hong Kong people, Hong Kong actor, singer and film producer. He began his professional career as an actor in local television series, winning TVB's Best Actor award in 1999 and 2001 ...

Simon Yam Simon Yam Tat-wah (; born 19 March 1955) is a Hong Kong actor and film producer. He received international acclaim for his performances in international film festival and box office hits such as ''Naked Killer'', '' SPL: Sha Po Lang'', ''Election' ...

and

Sun Honglei Sun Honglei (; born 16 August 1970) is a Chinese actor. Early life Sun was born in Harbin, Heilongjiang, on 16 August 1970. Sun developed an interest in acting and performances at a young age. He often skipped school to learn breakdancing on the ...

as a group of friends who uncover a hidden treasure that quickly draws attention among others. The film's tagline is "Temptation. Jealousy. Destiny." Each word is often associated with the segments that appear in

chronological order Chronology (from Latin ''chronologia'', from Ancient Greek , ''chrónos'', "time"; and , ''-logia'') is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time. Consider, for example, the use of a timeline or sequence of events. It ...

. The first Hong Kong film made in a frame story format, ''Triangle'' had each director take charge of a film segment, bringing in their own production team and screenwriters to continue the story set in motion by the previous director. Critics made easy notice of the lack of continuity in between each segment, since the trio of directors did not share their scripts together while discussing the concepts. ''Triangle'' was screened out of competition at the

2007 Cannes Film Festival The 60th Cannes Film Festival ran from 16 to 27 May 2007. The President of the Jury was British director Stephen Frears. Twenty two films from twelve countries were selected to compete for the Palme d'Or. The awards were announced on 26 May. '' 4 ...

. It was later released in China on 1 October 2007, which was one month before its theatrical Hong Kong release.

Plot

Small-timer Fei (Louis Koo), his married buddy Sam (Simon Yam), and antique store owner Mok (Sun Hong Lei) are all in desperate need of money. Fei wants his friend to drive a robbery getaway car, but Sam backs out, throwing Fei in trouble with the triads. As the three are arguing, a mysterious man leaves them a map, leading them to an unlikely treasure under the Legislative Council building. All their financial woes seem to be solved after a late-night heist, but they are being tracked by shady cop Wen (

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 ...

), who is carrying on an affair with Sam's emotionally unstable wife, Ling (

Kelly Lin Kelly Lin or Lin Hsi-Lei () is a Taiwanese actress and model who has appeared mainly in Hong Kong films. Biography Lin was born in Taiwan in 1973. She moved to Santa Barbara, California with her family at the age of 12. She graduated from the U ...

), and has connections with Fei. When the twisted relationship tangles come to light, the brotherhood dangerously breaks down and the treasure ends up in the wrong hands.

Cast

as Fei *

as Lee Bo-Sam *

as Mok Shing-Yuen *

as Wen *

as Ling * You Yong as Policeman *

Lam Suet Lam Suet (; born 1964), or Lin Xue, is a Hong Kong film actor. Life and career Lam was born in Tianjin, and came to Hong Kong as a youth in 1979 to receive inheritance money left by his grandfather. Soon after, all the money had been squander ...

as Fat Bo

Production

The film was shot entirely in Hong Kong with actors from the city and

Mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...

. Each director was solely responsible for one third of the film (about 30-minute long). They did not discuss their segments with each other, and each director had a different set of writers working on each segment, the most notable being

Yau Nai-hoi Yau Nai-hoi () is a Hong Kong screenwriter and director. He is best known as a frequent screenwriter for films produced by the independent Hong Kong production company Milkyway Image, notably films directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai. Yau ...

Au Kin-yee Au Kin-yee () is a Hong Kong screenwriter. She is a long-time screenwriter for films directed by Johnnie To and/or Wai Ka-Fai of Milkyway Image and frequently works alongside writers Wai Ka-Fai, Yau Nai-Hoi Yau Nai-hoi () is a Hon ...

and

Yip Tin-shing Yip Tin-shing (; born 20 October 1965) is a Hong Kong screenwriter. Career Yip is a long-time screenwriter for films directed by Johnnie To and/or Wai Ka-fai of Milkyway Image and frequently works alongside screenwriters Szeto Kam-yuen ...

, frequent scriptwriters for Johnnie To and his

Milkyway Image Milkyway Image (Hong Kong) Ltd. () is a production company based in Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong. The company was established in 1996 by prolific director Johnnie To in joint partnership with frequent collaborator Wai Ka-Fai. The company is ...

films. All of the segments relied on the same editor, cinematographer and music for the sake of uniformity.3 directors form a 'Triangle' – Entertainment News, International News, Media – Variety
/ref> David M. Richardson served as an editor, Guy Zerafa provided the film score and Cheng Siu-Keung served as cinematographer. All three worked on To's 2006 film ''

Exiled ''Exiled'' () is a 2006 Hong Kong action drama film produced and directed by Johnnie To, and starring Anthony Wong, Francis Ng, Nick Cheung, Josie Ho, Roy Cheung and Lam Suet, with special appearances by Richie Jen and Simon Yam. The action ...

''. Tsui Hark was the first to start production for the film, since To and Lam agreed that it was his original concept. The initial plan was to shoot ''Triangle'' at the end of 2007, but the plan was changed due to the overwhelming positive response from a large number of European distributors. After Tsui completed the first segment of ''Triangle'', Lam looked at the development of it before shooting the second part, and handed the film to Johnnie To who completed the third part with its conclusion.News – March 2006

Festival showings

''Triangle'' was screened out of competition at the

. It was also screened at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival and the

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...

References

External links

* * * *
Milkyway Image Website

Film Workshop Website

Media Asia Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Triangle (2007 Film) 2007 films 2000s Cantonese-language films Hong Kong action thriller films Cinema of Hong Kong Films directed by Tsui Hark Films directed by Johnnie To Films directed by Ringo Lam Milkyway Image films 2000s action films Films with screenplays by Yau Nai-hoi Films set in Hong Kong Films shot in Hong Kong 2000s Hong Kong films