Mou gaan dou (2002)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Directors:

Wai-keung Lau
Siu Fai Mak

Writers:

Siu Fai Mak (written by) &
Felix Chong (written by)

Release Date:

12 December 2002 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Loyalty. Honor. Betrayal.

Plot:

A story between a mole in the police department and an undercover cop. Their objectives are the same: to find out who is the mole, and who is the cop.

Plot Keywords:

Mole | Police | Triad | Undercover | Undercover Cop

Awards:

23 wins & 19 nominations

Cast

Andy Lau	...	Inspector Lau Kin Ming
Tony Leung Chiu Wai	...	Chen Wing Yan (as Tony Leung)
Anthony Wong Chau-Sang	...	SP Wong Chi Shing (as Anthony Wong)
Eric Tsang	...	Hon Sam
Kelly Chen	...	Dr. Lee Sum Yee
Sammi Cheng	...	Mary
Edison Chen	...	Young Lau Kin Ming
Shawn Yue	...	Young Chan Wing Yan
Elva Hsiao	...	May
Chapman To	...	Tsui Wai-keung
Ka Tung Lam	...	Inspector B (as Lam Ka Tung)
Ting Yip Ng	...	Inspector Cheung (as Ng Ting Yip)
Dion Lam	...	Del Piero
Chi Keung Wan	...	Officer Leung (as Wan Chi Keung)
Hui Kam Fung	...	Cadet School Principal

Also Known As:

Infernal Affairs (International: English title)
Mou gaan dou (Hong Kong: Cantonese title) (alternative transliteration)
Non-Stop Way (Hong Kong: English title) (literal title)
Wu jian dao (Hong Kong: Mandarin title)
Affaires internes (Canada: French title) [fr]
Asuntos infernales (Argentina) (video title) [es]
Conflitos Internos (Brazil) [pt]
Infernal Affairs (Germany) (festival title) [de]
Infernal Affairs (Finland) [fi]
Infernal Affairs (France) [fr]
Infernal Affairs (Italy) (DVD title) [it]
Infernal Affairs - Die achte Hölle (Germany) (TV title) [de]
Juego sucio (Spain) [es]
Mugendô (Japan) [ja]
O anthropos tou nomou (Greece) (video title) [el]
Põrgulik amet (Estonia) [et]
Satanikes ypotheseis (Greece) (festival title) [el]

MPAA:

Rated R for violence.

Runtime:

101 min | Hong Kong:97 min (director's cut)

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese | English | Thai

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Taiwan:R-12 | Iceland:16 | Malaysia:U | South Korea:12 | Brazil:18 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Finland:K-15 | France:-12 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Argentina:13

Company:

Media Asia Films

Trivia:

The psychiatrist's name, "Lee Sum Yee", is a homonym (in Cantonese) for "your psychiatrist".

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: During the funeral scene at the end, the drummer is not synchronized to the sound.

Quotes:

Chan Wing Yan: Should I salute you?
Lau Kin Ming: No, don't. How long have you been an undercover?
Chan Wing Yan: I've followed Sam for 3 years; I had several other bosses before. All together, it's been 10 years
Lau Kin Ming: 10 years? I should salute you, instead.
Chan Wing Yan: I just want an identity. I want to be a normal man.
Lau Kin Ming: Getting tired?
Chan Wing Yan: You've never been a mole. You won't understand. Too bad I still can't find the stooge. I'll take him down if I've found him.
Lau Kin Ming: Don't worry. Let me give you back your identity, I'll open your file, but I don't have the password.
[...]

Movie Connections:

References Lat sau san taam (1992)

Soundtrack:

MOU GAAN DOU (Infernal Affairs)

A textbook thriller

A deceptively simple idea lies at the heart of this complex thriller: the Hong Kong police and a triad gang both have an informer in each other's organisation: whoever's man picks the enemies' spy first wins the game for his side. Add to that the customary double-agent-doesn't-know-which-side-he-is-on-anymore subplot (doubled, of course), and you have plenty of ingredients for a plot, although it's to the movie's credit that although a little stylised, it never seems false or contrived. Fast-paced and bold, with a generous score, it never insults the viewer's intelligence either, and features just the right level of moral ambiguity. At one level, it's just another thriller, and there's little in the way of wider political or social subtext; but on the other hand, it's a textbook lesson in the art of making this sort of film.