A Return to the World of Moles and Crime
Back in 2016, we had a series called Movies And Their Remakes in which we looked at several pairs of films, one of which was the 2002 film Infernal Affairs directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak paired with Martin Scorsese’s 2006 remake The Departed. We had good things to say about both, and we mentioned that Infernal Affairs had two sequels, but we didn’t discuss them because they didnt’ fit that series. Well, our members voted that for our March and April 2023 member bonus episodes, we return to this world and finish what we started with conversations about Infernal Affairs II and Infernal Affairs III. So join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson – as we jump into our Infernal Affairs series and discuss Lau’s and Mak’s 2003 follow-up Infernal Affairs II.
Here’s a hint at what we talk about.
First off, if it’s a prequel, why is called #2? Isn’t that a bit confusing? That aside, there certainly are elements of this film that bring us back into the world to which we’d been introduced in the first film and we’re here for it. Plus, we have some female characters that already are better than any we got in the first film.
Unfortunately, the film does mire itself a bit too much in the need to provide setup for us because of the fact that it’s a prequel. Sure, Lau and Chan are the main characters in the first film, but this film isn’t their story. The added bits to flesh out their characters didn’t help us. What we did like, though, is the expanded relationship and backstory between Superintendent Wong and Sam, the crime boss. That relationship in this film isn’t required for the first film but gives us a new layer through which to see that film. It worked well for us.
On the whole, it’s a fun crime film that works well. Yes, it buries itself a bit too much in prequel stuff, but it’s still worth the watch. We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in. The Next Reel – when the movie ends, our conversation begins!
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