Rent Infernal Affairs 1 (2002)

Going Under - Infernal Affairs 1 review by Steve

High concept Hong Kong crime thriller with a unique premise. We've seen cops go undercover into narco-gangs before, but what if simultaneously the mob sends one (or more) of their own the other way? Yes, this could be merely schematic...

Except the idea is developed with intelligence- though admittedly the psychology/philosophy more than the logistics. And as well as the hooky Hollywood style action, the pumped up score and cool photography, we get a twist of neo-noir sadness.

There are genuine star performances from Andy Lau as the nerveless gangster who takes over police internal affairs and particularly Tony Leung as the cop who spends a decade out in the cold. Naturally, there is some subtext about identity.

And co-director Andrew Lau says this is an allegory about the handover of Hong Kong to the Chinese... But it mainly operates as one of the better gangster films of this century. The remake by Martin Scorsese is redundant; this is near flawless.

Solid gangster film if not spectacular - Infernal Affairs 1 review by CP Customer

It certainly had it's moments which is why I would probably give it an 8/10 (4/5 on here) it's interesting how it came to influence The Departed so much but in it's own being a good movie and having many memorable moments, the performances like Steve said are great and one of the reasons why this film is so good.

Two-Faced Thriller - Infernal Affairs 1 review by griggs

There’s something deeply satisfying about a film that knows exactly what game it’s playing and then plays it better than almost anyone else. Infernal Affairs knows the assignment and wastes no time getting on with it.

Tony Leung gives the film its soul: all quiet exhaustion and low-level dread, like a man who’s been undercover so long he’s started to come apart at the seams. Andy Lau is the perfect counterweight — polished, watchful, and just panicked enough underneath. They spend much of the film apart, but it still makes their connection feel horribly tight.

Andrew Lau and Alan Mak keep everything lean and coiled. No fat, no showing off, just pressure applied scene by scene. It moves at a hell of a clip, but never feels like it’s skipping steps.

It’s not quite untouchable — now and then you can feel the gears turning — but when it hits, it really hits. A crime thriller with a brain, a pulse, and absolutely no interest in hanging about.