‘Infernal Affairs’ is a Hong Kong crime drama, which Hollywood director Martin Scorsese later remade as ‘The Departed’ in 2006. The mark of a great film is being able to enjoy it without understanding the spoken language, which requires the story and acting to be top-notch. I watched ‘Infernal Affairs’ thinking it was a South Korean film, only to realize afterward that it was actually a Chinese film from Hong Kong. I don’t know any Chinese or Korean, so I couldn’t tell—although I should have picked up on the character names, which sounded Chinese. This was one such outstanding film. The superintendent of police sends a young police cadet, Chan Wing Yan, to infiltrate the local Hong Kong-based mafia as an undercover officer. Inversely, the mafia infiltrates the police with one of their own, Lau Kin Ming. When an operation goes south for both sides, it becomes clear there’s a mole in their midst. What follows is a tense cat-and-mouse game as both the mafia and the police race to uncover the mole on the opposite sides. It’s a story of honor, loyalty, betrayal, and redemption—the full arc.

While Scorsese took the ideas here to an even better experience, hats must go off to the original for a fine job. From a technical perspective, this was amazing. The stunning cinematography, sharp direction, vibrant visuals, and graceful music stood out to me, immersed in an intriguing, original script. The cast also fit well together and had solid acting, especially the two playing the moles and the Superintendent. There were a few plotlines that felt implied, but it wasn’t clear. For instance, when Chan runs into his ex-girlfriend and her daughter, it’s hinted the daughter’s father might be Chan. However, the story never revisits it, making it feel unnecessary. A couple of other similar instances made you wonder about certain things with no explanation provided. The opening scenes were also so-so, and they used different actors for the young Chan and Lau, which made it somewhat confusing. Overall, I think the central cat-and-mouse chase was engrossing enough to cover up any minor flaws. A few other interesting tidbits. I learned that buildings in Hong Kong and China skip the 4th floor because ‘4’ in Chinese sounds similar to death. This film grossed more money in 2002 than Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Spider-Man. An alternate ending was made for the Chinese market, where the communist party was concerned about the political implications of the original version released in Hong Kong and the rest of the world.

Would I recommend this? Yes. I think this film is almost as good as ‘The Departed.’ If it wasn’t for the few minor issues mentioned, I would say it’s equal quality. If you don’t mind subtitles, I would definitely recommend it.