''Protégé'' is a 2007 crime drama film written and directed by

Derek Yee Derek Yee Tung-sing () is a Hong Kong filmmaker and former actor. Early life Yee was born Yee Tung-sing in Hong Kong on 28 December 1957, the son of Yee Kwong (), a film producer from Tianjin, Tientsin (Tianjin), and Hung Wei (), an actress of ...

. A Hong Kong-Singaporean co-production, the film stars

Andy Lau Andy Lau Tak-wah ( zh, order=t,j, t=劉德華, j=Lau4 Dak1 Waa4; born Lau Fook-wing; 27 September 1961), is a Hong Kong actor, singer-songwriter and film producer. He was named the "Fourth Tiger" among the Five Tiger Generals of TVB in the 1 ...

Daniel Wu Daniel Wu Neh-Tsu (; born September 30, 1974) is an American actor. He is known as a "flexible and distinctive" leading actor in the Chinese language film industry. Since his film debut in 1998, he has been featured in over 60 films. A three- ...

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, receiving recognition for his roles in ''The C ...

, Zhang Jingchu and

Anita Yuen Anita Yuen Wing Yee (born 4 September 1971) is a Hong Kong actress and beauty pageant titleholder. She is best known for her roles in the films '' C'est la vie, mon chéri'' (1993), '' He's a Woman, She's a Man'' (1994), and '' From Beijing with Lo ...

Plot

Undercover A cover in foreign, military or police human intelligence or counterintelligence is the ostensible identity and role or position in an infiltrated organization assumed by a covert agent during a covert operation. Official cover In espionage, a ...

officer Nick had spent the last seven years penetrating into the core of a drug ring, working his way up from a street

dealer Dealer may refer to: Film and TV * ''Dealers'' (film), a 1989 British film * ''Dealers'' (TV series), a reality television series where five art and antique dealers bid on items * ''The Dealer'' (film), filmed in 2008 and released in 2010 * ...

post to the managerial position handling cargo deliveries for Kwan – the biggest player in the local

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

market. When the ailing Kwan makes Nick his

protégé Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...

, Nick cannot help but sway before money and power and starts to perform his role like a real drug trafficker. This, together with his affair with heroin-addict Fan, causes Nick to become more and more confused about his true identity, and eventually leads to a disastrous end. The film begins with a scene in a dark isolated rundown apartment building, showing a heroin addict living poorly with her young daughter. The scene then forwards to the perspective of Officer Nick who is suffering from loneliness just after completing an undercover assignment. He recalls the entire story of what happened and the events to lead to his emptiness. Towards the end of the film, Nick finally builds a case strong enough to catch Kwan. However, Kwan realizes he has no way out and commits suicide traumatizing Nick because Kwan has put so much trust and faith in Nick, treating him like family. In addition, he finds that Fan who he had been looking after throughout the film, died of an overdose, discovering her body with rats on it. Due to this trauma, Nick completely goes into a breakdown. Swearing vengeance, and knowing that Fan's drug addicted husband was responsible for her death and encouraged her multiple times, Nick tricks Fan's husband into doing a drug run, however it turns out to be a trip to

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, and arriving at

Changi Airport Singapore Changi Airport ( ; ) is the primary international airport that serves the country of Singapore, and is one of the largest transportation hubs in Asia. More than 100 airlines operate from the airport, with flights to destinations in A ...

, Nick sets a trap with Singaporean customs officials to arrest Fan's husband on the spot. Nick then coldly informs Fan's husband that its over and that he will receive the death penalty under Singapore Law. Nick then returns home to Hong Kong, but is deeply affected by the death's of Kwan and Fan. He considers using drugs himself and just before he does, Fan's surviving daughter comes in and throws the drugs away saving Nick and silently reminding him he has something to live for.

Cast

as Lam Kwan *

as Nick (Lee Chi-lik) *

as Fan's husband * Zhang Jingchu as Fan (Pang Yuk-fan) *

as Kwan's wife *

as Miu Chi-wah * He Meitian as Kwan's sister in-law *

Liu Kai-chi Dick Liu Kai-chi (, 30 September 1953 – 28 March 2021) was a Hong Kong actor, best known for his everyman supporting roles. His career spanned over 40 years, with appearances in over 90 television series and 70 films. He earned eight nomina ...

as HKCED Customs Chief * Nirut Sirijanya as Gen Chanchai *

Qi Yuwu Qi Yuwu (born 28 November 1976) is a Chinese actor based in Singapore. He is a permanent resident of Singapore and a contracted artiste under Beijing Enlight Media Group. Early life and career Qi studied at Guangzhou Physical Education In ...

as a Singaporean custom's official (Cameo Appearance)

Critical reception

The film received generally positive reviews. Perry Lam, for example, wrote in ''Muse'' magazine, 'The movie is powerful precisely because it doesn't preach, and therefore spares us all the usual opinions, standard platitudes and naive assumptions about drug dealing and addiction.'

DVD release

Region 1 DVD (US & Canada) On 24 February 2009 Dragon Dynasty, released "Protégé" on Region 1 DVD: Special Features: *Feature Length Audio Commentary with Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey Logan *The Making of ''Protégé'' Undercover & Over the Edge: An Exclusive Interview with Leading Man

*Chasing the Dragon: An Exclusive Interview with Leading Lady Zhang Jingchu *The Dealer: An Exclusive Interview with Producer

Peter Chan Peter Ho-sun Chan (born 28 November 1962), also known as Peter Chan, is a Hong Kong-born filmmaker best known for directing films that span a wide range of genres, including romantic comedies, musical dramas, and historical epics. He is r ...

*Original Theatrical Trailer

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * *
HK cinemagic entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Protege (Film) 2000s Cantonese-language films 2007 films 2007 crime drama films Hong Kong crime drama films Films set in Hong Kong Films set in Thailand Films set in Singapore Films directed by Derek Yee Films about heroin addiction Films about the illegal drug trade Polybona Films films 2000s Hong Kong films Films scored by Peter Kam