Infernal Affairs 3

Infernal Affairs 3 builds cleverly on the plotline of the first movie, but with its complex story and frequent switches between past and present, is likely to seriously confuse anyone who comes to it without having seen Part 1 first to understand the two main characters. For those who have, this film brings out further details of the relationship between the two, superbly played again by Tony Leung and Andy Lau. With frequent flashbacks, the film focuses on extending the story of Triad mole Ming (Andy Lau), warping up the tension as the stresses of his double life become intolerable. Leon Lai's usual expressionless performance, which mars his other films, works well here as it leaves you few clues about his character's motivation until the climax.

If you enjoyed Part 1, you will enjoy this. (I haven't seen Part 2 yet.)

My infernal 'Infernal Affairs' marathon concludes with the third part of this epic saga. This time we're closing in on another mole in the Police force. The trouble is, we keep slipping back into the past so we can see how this guy ties in with it all. To be honest it's a bit of a mess but here's a brief summary while I can still remember it (summary haters, and those that don't wish to know about the plot, take some bad guys out while I write the next paragraph).

Lau Kin Ming has now been cleared of any wrongdoing in the death of the undercover cop, Chan Wing Yan. He can now concentrate on finding other moles in the Police force. His attention is drawn to SP Yeung Kam Wing who seems to be keeping his cards very close to his chest. Another candidate is Shen Chen, a man who, at one time, was Hon Sam's partner. Not everybody is who they seem to be and add to this a lot of flashing backwards and forwards in time, it makes for a rather confusing plot… Think I'll leave it there, I'm getting confused.

It's pretty well made, but it seems very cobbled together and has little coherence. The plot is very hard to follow and a bit of a mess of a screenplay doesn't really help. Performance wise; Tony Leung Chiu Wai was pretty good as Chan Wing Yan, as was Andy Lau as Lau Kin Ming. Of the rest, Leon Lai did a decent job as the enigmatic SP Yeung Kam Wing and Daoming Chen was pretty good as Shen Chen.

The first two films were really good and so I found it hard to believe this one could be so bad. It almost feels like it was rushed out too quickly after the success of the first two and suffered greatly for it. It certainly lacks the punch of the first two and as such is a rather disappointing conclusion to the trilogy. NOT recommended.

My Score: 4.6/10

I've watched Infernal Affairs I, II & III, in a year time. I loved the first one very much. It gave me a very unexpected feeling. It's simple but strong in impact. Though one could mention a lot of flaws in the plot, I just couldn't resist its charm. The second one made me disappointed because it lacked the kind of impact the first one gave me. Now after watching the third one, I realise why there needs to be a second one in totally different style than the first one. It's a preparation for the audiences adapting to the change in the third one.

I like this third one. Without the second one, probably I would have been like the other audiences critising the change of style from the first one. It's this kind of change, it's made the film more solid, full of human feeling. The first one indeed was touching only the surface of the hole. This third one is more into the content of it - the heart of the people.

I love particularly the part describing Andy Lau's psychological sufferings and changes. The shadowing effect he had with Tony Leung should deserve a credit for script writing, directing and editting. The interlacing of stories between that happened before and after Tony Leung's death has been editted great. I feel sorry for people who don't read this or who don't like it. It's certainly the best part of the film which should earn a credit rather than negative critics.

I would conclude that the first one is like spicy cuisine which is strong in taste and quick in making one like it immediately if you can stand it. The third one is somehow a French cuisine where you have to be patient, taste it slowly together with the wine before you appreciate the marvellous cooking skills and feel the heart of the Chef.

While this is a great film with an incomparable score and outstanding cinematography, it leaves a lot to be desired.

It is really not necessary as the first two films really give us all we need. It is light on action and heavy on psychological trauma. Andy Lau as Inspector Lau has taken care of all the moles - or he thinks he has. he is not sure and wants to be clear there is nothing tying him to Sam so he can be the good cop he wants to be. SP Leung is a creepy fellow and we are never sure just what he is. Is he a mole, or just a crooked cop. It is never clear.

I was glad that Kelly Chen got a much bigger role as Dr. lee, but it would have been even better if we saw a relationship with Yan. It was obvious that she had love for him, but it never blossomed on screen. Yes, I know that would be a violation of the doctor-patient relationship, but it was there under the surface. Why didn't it come out.

We got to see quite a bit of Tony Leung in this film, and that is always a good thing.

It was very distracting the way the film jumped back and forth through time. It was trying to tie up the loose ends, but it was disconcerting.

It could have been an outstanding film, but it'll just have to be great to see the actors and enjoy their performance.

If you loved the first two 'Internal Affairs' movie, then you'll probably find it easy to also enjoy this concluding part: if not, you may find it more difficult. Part one was a tense thriller; part two, more epic in tone, a prequel that filled in the back story, concentrating on some of the secondary characters from the first film. But it's not completely clear where there's any plot left to fill a third part. What this film does is overlay the previous stories with an additional layer of romanticism and complexity; but there's a certain lack of focus to the plot, with almost all of our favourite characters already dead by the end of the second film (although, in flashback, there's a rebirth for the great Tony Leung, absent from part two). Indeed, the film works almost entirely by encouraging us to feel differently about scenes we have already witnessed. I still liked this third story about the quiet men of violence, and it did succeed in feeling like something more than just a repeat of the earlier films. But it's not so clear how much it adds to them.