Infernal Affairs III

The last installment in the Infernal Affairs trilogy is surprisingly slow moving, but still has the high production values and intricate story of the first two, although as a whole it is slightly less engaging than the preceding films. There have been a lot of comparisons between this trilogy and The Godfather films, and the similarities in story-telling structure and the overall arc of the sequels are definitely there, although I have to admit that I think the Godfathers exist on an entirely different level as these films. The Infernal Affairs films are good, but they're not THAT good.

There is a lot of work in bringing together the stories of the first two films and it definitely adds to them, but I found this one to be too slow moving, although the pace picked up by the third act and the final scene is definitely impressive.

On the other hand, the trilogy ends on a serious downer - "Ksitigarbha Sutra - 'People of the like shall be cast into the Avinci Hell and will continue to suffer from Kalpas to Kalpas with no means of escape.'

I may as well just admit that I don't know the meaning or source of this quote, but it sure seems like a depressing note to end the trilogy on. Nevertheless, despite being just a little bit of a let-down (like countless trilogy finales), Internal Affairs 3 is a necessary closure, and Asian cinema fans are sure to eat it up.

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.)

While in the U.S. the 3rd movie of anything is suppose to be the large-scale, big-budget, battle-destruction-galore ending to a series, Infernal Affairs 3 shamelessly does the opposite and delivers an introspective look devoid of any "battle" scene at all. Now that IA has become somewhat of a cult following (ironically the story is not meant to go any further) it seems fitting that we are delivered a film as if the cutting-room floor pieces were placed together from the previous two movies and sequenced for the conclusion.

The story attempts to elaborate the most important details of the series and not presenting them in sequence, only a handful of present scenes exist which each are periodically given a large delve into the past. IA 3 explores what happened leading up to many scenes in the first Infernal Affairs which is really pretty neat for anyone who watches movies and seen the first. As a result its a jumble and mix of scenes giving you dates of when they occur (sometimes eliciting humor) and glimpsing every single character in the series as if they were the past but really filmed new for the movie. And in this way follows Yan and Ming's characters as they progress to their fates.

But it seems perhaps that by doing so, the movie is simply what was left out in the first film and anyone new to the series will obviously not understand the significance of what is going on other than the artsy cinematography of white-washed cool hues, steady camera work, and continual sponsorship of devices and products. This also includes the chaotic, dizzy feeling of progressing back and forth sometimes not knowing when you are (as with scenes that occur in Ming's mind only). Perhaps only the avid movie goer will realize Mo Gan Do 3 is a representation of hell in a high-tech world, the redemption of Yan and Ming's fall into insanity. But most will be confused about why until they see it all.

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.

Having now watched the entire INFERNAL AFFAIRS trilogy, I've concluded that only the original film was necessary. The first sequel took the form of a prequel, an entirely extraneous piece of back story that adding nothing to the original and would have worked better as a stand alone movie. This, the second sequel, is even worse, a muddled attempt at tying together both prequel and sequel, adding in lots of entirely superfluous stuff and additional characters that are all entirely necessary.

Tony Leung returns to the movie series, but his scenes amount to nothing more than padding; his character was so carefully delineated in the first movie, there's entirely nothing to add. Andy Lau has the most interesting role in a sub-plot that follows on directly from the first film's, and this section of the film was the most entertaining. But it's still rather unnecessary, and would have been much better had it been tied up at the end of the first film, as Scorsese did when he remade the series as THE DEPARTED.

Overall, INFERNAL AFFAIRS 3 feels confused and muddled. The constant jumping between past and present happens so much that it's ridiculous, and it becomes overwhelming clear that this was only rushed out to make a quick buck or two after the success of the original film.