Hak bak sam lam

Everything in Colour of Truth you have seen before, likely more than once, and these elements are put together in way that is frightfully predictable. This however does not prevent the movie from being watchable and even enjoyable. One reason is the good, brisk pace. The other is the abundance of characters, which provides a good variety even if most of them are somewhat one-dimensional. The main reason, however, is Anthony Wong.

Academy of Performing Arts trained, Wong is a true actor and a joy to watch whether he is in lead, support, or even a cameo role. In Colour of Truth, the two lead roles are a veteran police inspector, played by Wong, and a young officer whose father was a colleague that the inspector shot, under dubious circumstances. In this movie, Wong for the first time adopts an identity that reflects what he is in real life, a Eurasian, something he rarely refers to because he detests his English father who deserted him and his mother. It is completely different in the movie. Inspector Wong Jiang's father, once a bomb expert in England, is incapacitated by two strokes. The inspector feeds, baths and even changes diaper for his father. It's quite a touching scene to see Inspector Wong stroking his father's almost hairless head gently. I seem to sense that behind the actor, Anthony Wong is stroking a father that he longs to have but never had.

The movie is a good commercial flick, and followers of Hong Kong movie will enjoy seeing many faces, albeit some of them briefly. There are Francis Ng and Lau Ching-Wun, two of Hong Kong's best actors, playing a good, tense scene with Wong at the beginning. There is Tse Yin, now at his 70s, an icon in the Hong Kong movie world and still active.

Of the up and rising, there is Gillian Chung from the Twins Effect and Tao Man-Chak who is getting a good handle of his comic role since Internal Affairs. Chan Siu-Chun plays a role he is very familiar with since his Goo Wark Jai series: an underworld boss. Pinky Cheung would have got the voluptuous role of the Vietnamese assassin a couple of years ago but now it is given to the new comer Winnie Leung who play the real estate agent in Twine Effect. Pinky instead plays a middle-aged mother. I have not forgotten about the other lead, the young policy officer taken under the wings of Wong who he believes to be the murder of his father. Wong Ho-Yin, young and fresh looking, gave a respectable performance.

Jing Wong's "Color of the truth" is the kind of films that great directors are remembered by, with beautifully crafted cinematography and just the right mix of editorial features, it is a signature addition to Wong's body of work. A perfect mix of hard-nosed cops and gangsters who die trying.

One of the most powerful scenes of film came early on in the opening sequence, where an undercover informant played by Ching Wan Lau is confronted by his supervising officer played by the delightful Anthony Wong and his mark, a local mob boss played by the colorful Francis Ng.

On a beautifully lit rooftop, (a love letter from cinematographer Edmond Fung to his camera) the trio are put in what may stand alongside Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs" as one of the best Mexican stand-offs in world cinema to date.

In an attempt to conceal his cover, Seven up (Lau) gently reassures his commanding officer by placing his hand on Huang's(Wong) shoulder, focus is pulled to the foreground leaving Lau's face and the rest of the conversation to take place in the unfocused background.

The performance by Anthony Wong brings a refreshing quality and adds a darker persona to his already impressive repertoire. Comic genius Man Chat To has acquired the kind of master timing that most comics only dream about, playing the "wacky assistant" role, reminiscence of Stephen Chow's standout performances.

It may be far too early to be branding the year¡¦s ¡§best¡¨ but if ¡§Color of the Truth¡¨ is forgotten when the awards draw near, it will be a shame as well as a mystery.

Daniel Chan (Independent Filmmaker)

A very tight film with excellent performances from Anthony Wong and Jordan Chan. Solid performances from Chapman To, who was not as annoying as usual and Patrick Tse, who just oozed slime. Wong stars as a police man who kills a criminal(the talented Francis Ng) and an undercover cop(the charismatic Lau Ching-wan). The sons (Chan and Raymond Wong) of the dead men both want revenge. Raymond Wong joins the police force and is eventually put on Anthony Wong's team. He gets to know this man who "murdered" his father by watching him try to catch a Vietnam gang member and by watching him take care of his father, the victim of a stroke. With a few predictable and unpredictable twists, the film reaches a very satisfying conclusion. The only problem, and it's a big one, is the annoying soundtrack. A fine bit of music used while the police investigate a gruesome murder scene is totally inappropriate when the sons are visiting the graves of their fathers.

Let me introduce you to this movie with a little warning. Don't expect it being a pure vengeance flick. You shouldn't also be misled by the fact that this movie comes from Hongkong and expect a high paced martial arts movie. This also isn't a movie about Chinese culture as it could take place in any other country. That's why this movie might especially please to people that rather watch traditional European thrillers and not to all fans of the Asian cinema. To some people this flick could be a soft but impressing introduction to Asian cinema. If you are in the same situation as me who adores Asian movies but who has a girlfriend and mother that rather dislike this kind of cinema, this movie could be what you have been looking for.

Take this movie as it is: a very entertaining cop thriller with a couple of moral and philosophic touches and a couple of more or less surprising twists. Those two aspects are enough to make this movie stand out from many others of its kind but this isn't enough to make a masterpiece of it. I should also mention the solid acting by most of the characters but the negative aspect is that the main character is played by the weakest actor that does a rather faceless performance and needs some time to grow into his role which leads to some lengths in the beginning. But the movie is worth the wait and many intriguing characters are introduced and the mid tempo pace kicks in after a mediocre start. The rest is the usual stuff including some explosive action scenes, a little bit of suspense, some humour and a little shot of romance.

This movie is worth to be watched and very entertaining but I wouldn't have bought it or watched it in the movie theatres. If you want a great Asian cop thriller go and check out the Korean "Memories of Murder" and check out some of my other reviews on this site.

After, Qi Xi, whom even calls 7-up (how's that for product placement) is killed, his young boy grows up thinking that Huang (the great Anthony Wong) a policeman had killed him. Now as a new graduate of the police academy and going by the name of Coke, he plans to avenge his fathers death. This film is derivative of better films, but the acting and the stylistic action keeps it not only afloat but makes it a pretty good film in it's own right. I was never bored with it as it kept my attention throughout.

DVD Extras: Making of; Movie Synopsis; Cast bios; 2 Theatrical Trailers; Trailer for "Love undercover 2"

My movie/DVD grade: B/F (too many of the extras aren't subtitled)