Nov
10
2007
Election (Hak se wui)
Posted by luna6 6 Comments
Movie: Election / Hak se wui
Release Date: October 20, 2005
Country: Hong Kong / China
Director: Johnny To
Starring: Simon Yam, Tony Leung Ka Fai
Runtime: 100 min
Editor Rating: 7.5
Users Rating: 7.91 
(22 votes)
Loading …
Johnnie To is one of the more talented and prolific Hong Kong directors today. I’ve only just recently caught on to his magic, as the few films that I have seen from him in the past (Breaking News) were mildly interesting, but didn’t have any of the spark or creativity of his better works. Then I was fortunate enough to watch his 2006 flick “Exiled” and, yeah, that one did make me take notice. Now I have the good fortune of reviewing his 2005 film “Election”, which was just released on DVD in the U.S. by Tartan Films.
“Election” is the first of a two part set centered around the Hong Kong Triad. Yes, there’s tons of these films floating around, but Johnnie To seems to have an innate ability bring out the best from the familiar genre.
Every two years there’s an election held in Hong Kong, but its not a governmental election that the movie revolves around. Rather, it’s an election for the Chairman of the Hong Kong Triads. The bosses from the various regional groups come together to elect one undisputed leader. This time around, the contestants are Big D (Tony Leung Ka Fai) and Lok (Simon Yam). Their styles and mannerisms could not be any more different. Big D is simply a human time bomb, walking around with a lit fuse. Lok, on the other hand, is gentlemanly and is as apt to use his brains as he would brute force. The two are run neck and neck in the tight election. Eventually, Lok pulls ahead and wins the election, but Big D refuses to acknowledge defeat. An all important symbolic Dragon Head baton is to be given to the newly elected Triad leader. That baton is currently in mainland China and Big D plans to retrieve it before Lok does. Furthermore the Hong Kong police are aware of the situation and are ready to come down hard on the group to prevent an all out gang war. Lok is now placed in the ultra delicate position to maintain face by going forward as the Chairman of the Triads, while avoiding an all out war with Big D. The fate of Hong Kong Triads lays in the balance.
And so that’s the way Johnny To’s “Election” begins. One of the more impressive aspects about the film is the dizzying amount of great performances placed into the film. From Simon Yam to Tony Leung Kai Fai to Tian-lin Wang to Nick Cheung and many others, these guys all bring their A-game. What’s even more remarkable about this fact is that the final result doesn’t lead to a single performer coming out as the star of the show, rather the entire mystique of the Hong Kong Triads is what stays in your mind after the watching the film.
As fun as it was to watch all these great performances and the Johnnie To magic itself, the conclusion of the film didn’t quite live up to all that promise. The final scene is set within a small island where monkeys surround the area. An easy allegory for the barbaric actions that would soon occur. The display of brutality that is then shown, appears to be created foremost for shock value and then as a simple lesson, that no matter how romanticized the Triad world can be, they still live in a primitive world where only the strongest survive. The problem with this? Just the simplicity of it, compared to all the double crosses and mind games hinted at in the first half of the film. Basically, the movie promised the world but delivered a fortune cookie.
Even with that minor quibble aside, there is still a lot to admire about the film. If you want a taste of the Hong Kong underworld, than “Election” will likely leave you amazed. Even if you don’t care for the genre or that part of society, the suspense and plot developments should easily win you over. Recommended.
Cast:
Simon Yam – Lam Lok
Tony Leung Ka Fai – Big D
Louis Koo – Jimmy Lee
Nick Cheung – Jet
Ka Tung Lam – Kun
Siu-Fai Cheung – Mr. So
Suet Lam – Big Head
Tian-lin Wang – ‘Uncle’ Teng Wai
Ping-Man Tam – Uncle Cocky
Maggie Siu – Mrs. Big D
David Chiang – Chief Superintendent Hui
Yong You – China Police Captain
Wong Chun – Whistle
Siu-Pang Chan – Uncle Monk / Long Guen
Bun Yuen – Incense Master
If you like this movie you may enjoy: Infernal Affairs, Exiled, A Dirty Carnival, A Bittersweet Life
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}
2005 Movie Reviews, Chinese Movies, Movie Reviews |
Comments
6 Comments so far
i got bored with eye in the sky after 20 minutes. i probably wouldnt bother with this one either-even if it is bringing new ideas to the same done to death genre. i just think there are too many guy directors in hk obsessed with gangs n triads. wonder y.
Yep, Breaking News wasn’t his best effort. But what I like about To is that he’s always trying to find new ideas to rejuvenate the genre. Thus I’m each time looking forward to seeing his new movies.
Lifefirst : Oops thanks for pointing that out. Forgot he produced rather than directed that one … thanks.
The Eye in the Sky wasn’t directed by Johnnie To by the way….but personally I found this film to be extremely dull. Maybe I’ll watch it again to get a second opinion.
I’ll second that too Elvyse. I really didn’t think much of breaking news or eye in the sky…so it’s a nice surprise to see how good his other stuff can be.
Yup nice movie. I saw the two parts at the beginning of the year. Both are a recommended watch. I preferred these films to Exiled, though that last one was good too. Johnnie To is definitely one of the most interesting HK directors right now.