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Election 2

Original title: Hak se wui: Yi woo wai kwai
  • 2006
  • 12
  • 1h 33m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
7.3K
YOUR RATING
Election 2 (2006)
CrimeDramaThriller

As election time nears, current Triad chairman Lok (Yam) faces competition from his godsons. At the same time, Jimmy (Koo) looks to increase his business relations with mainland China.As election time nears, current Triad chairman Lok (Yam) faces competition from his godsons. At the same time, Jimmy (Koo) looks to increase his business relations with mainland China.As election time nears, current Triad chairman Lok (Yam) faces competition from his godsons. At the same time, Jimmy (Koo) looks to increase his business relations with mainland China.

  • Director
    • Johnnie To
  • Writers
    • Nai-Hoi Yau
    • Tin-Shing Yip
  • Stars
    • Louis Koo
    • Simon Yam
    • Nick Cheung
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.4/10
    7.3K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Johnnie To
    • Writers
      • Nai-Hoi Yau
      • Tin-Shing Yip
    • Stars
      • Louis Koo
      • Simon Yam
      • Nick Cheung
    • 26User reviews
    • 72Critic reviews
    • 83Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 14 nominations total

    Photos9

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    Top cast41

    Edit
    Louis Koo
    Louis Koo
    • Jimmy
    Simon Yam
    Simon Yam
    • Lok
    Nick Cheung
    Nick Cheung
    • Jet
    Ka-Tung Lam
    Ka-Tung Lam
    • Kun
    • (as Lam Ka Tung)
    Suet Lam
    Suet Lam
    • Big Head
    • (as Lam Suet)
    Eddie Cheung
    Eddie Cheung
    • Mr. So
    • (as Cheung Siu Fai)
    Tian-Lin Wang
    Tian-Lin Wang
    • Uncle Teng
    • (as Wong Tin Lam)
    Mark Ho-nam Cheng
    Mark Ho-nam Cheng
    • Bo
    • (as Mark Cheng Ho-nam)
    Bing-Man Tam
    Bing-Man Tam
    • Uncle Cocky
    • (as Tam Ping Man)
    Yue-Tong Pan
    • Janice
    • (as Pauline Pan)
    Andy On
    Andy On
    • Lik
    Yong You
    • Mr. Xi
    • (as Yao Yung)
    • …
    Mo-Hau Cheung
    • Mr. Shu
    • (as Albert Cheung)
    Bun Yuen
    Bun Yuen
    • Incense Master
    • (as Yuen Bun)
    Shing Lun Mok
      Jonathan Yat-Sing Lee
      Jonathan Yat-Sing Lee
      • Denny
      • (as Jonathan Lee)
      Sze Yan Wong
      • Chak
      • (as Wong Sze Yan)
      Alan Chung San Chui
      Alan Chung San Chui
      • Uncle Tank
      • (as Tsui Chung Shun)
      • Director
        • Johnnie To
      • Writers
        • Nai-Hoi Yau
        • Tin-Shing Yip
      • All cast & crew
      • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

      User reviews26

      7.47.3K
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      Featured reviews

      9arch_deluxe

      An unflinching meditation on corruption

      Election 2, like its predecessor and the acclaimed "Infernal Affairs", seems to usher a new wave Hong Kong crime cinema. Highly stylized and almost completely devoid of the typical "action" sequences that HK gangster pictures have become associated with, Election 2 is also one of the coldest films in recent memory.

      The plot is somewhat unremarkable and predictable, but in this case its how the film is told that makes it stand apart. The underworld depicted by director Johnny To is populated by sullen, disaffected thugs in expensive suits, with no loyalties held sacred but to their insatiable greed. The isolation of these men, (and Louis Koo as Jimmy in particular), as they trade away the remaining scraps of their humanity is a chilling thing to behold. The lighting, music, and sparse sets all echo the overwhelming emptiness and dread radiated by these characters, excellently performed by an ensemble of talented actors. Characters carried over from the first film seem to have developed in the two year interim to Election 2, and have become much more realized than the rather thin caricatures of the original.

      Johnny To also seems to have a better grasp of the subject; wisely opting for a more serious approach, he injects a political theme that elevates the material out of the typical power fantasy of gangster films. Although the film certainly has its share of violent scenes, they are a good deal less gory than the majority of "shock cinema" today, and somehow even more harrowing. One particularly chilling scene is almost completely silent, save the blood-freezing soundtrack's eerie drone. Presented in such icy fashion that it becomes savagely artistic, Election 2's violence will stay with you long after the credits run. Despite the fetishistic renditions of violence and Triad traditions, these power obsessed sociopaths are hardly glamorous; their quiet panic becoming palpable as the realization sets in that greed has condemned them all. It is a testament to the director's talent that even without a single likable character for the audience to root for; the film remains compelling right to the bitter end.

      Election 2 is an uncompromising film; violent, serious, politically controversial, and spectacularly unsympathetic. It also depends in large part on the viewer having seen its prequel, a similar if inferior examination of the same subject and themes. It is also one of the most interesting crime dramas in some time. Special note must be given once again to the score, which raises the tension significantly, and gives it a unique flavor more akin to a horror movie than a gangster film. Johnny To has shaped a bleak monster out of the typical conventions of crime noir; it leaves the viewer with much food for thought on subjects many would find distasteful, but anyone with an interest in the shallow, ruthless underbelly of organized crime is recommended to give it a look.
      8johno-21

      Triad Election

      I recently saw this at the 2007 Palm Springs International Film Festival and I had never seen the first film of this series but this still stands on it's own without the benefit of seeing the first film Election. This being distributed as Triad Election although in the opening credits is called Election 2. This is the story of a large Hong Kong crime syndicate that has it's hand in several business dealings from bootleg compact discs to government contracts in Hong Kong and on mainland China. Ten of the actors reprise their roles here from the first film. Lok is the head of the crime family of which was elected to serve a two year term and now his term is up. He wants to hang on to his power and not go into semi-retirement as an elder or uncle within the Triad. Jimmy is the odd-on favorite to win the election this time around but he is a reluctant candidate. He only wants to be a underworld businessman which he never will be unless he accepts the position as the elected one term leader of the crime family. Veterna director Johnny To is back as the director as well as the screenplay team of Nal Hei Yau and Tin-Shing yip, cinematographer Siu-keung Chang and production director Tony Yu. This is a violent film and many comparisons have been made with the Godfather and other American gangster films. Not knowing anything about this or it's predecessor film I didn't really know what to expect here but this is a well-polished film with a good story and plenty of interesting characters. I would give this an 8.0 out of 10.
      8Groverdox

      Superior to "Election" in every way

      The first "Election" film seems to be Johnnie To's most highly praised movie, which is strange, because I think this less-seen sequel is superior in every way. It has a plot you can actually understand, and a persistent style and tone.

      "Election" had key moments apparently happening off camera so you could only deduce what was going on in the plot with super-human concentration. Not so in the sequel. You get the gist pretty easily, and pretty early on: Lok, the elected chairman from the first movie, is approaching the end of his tenure, but is considering breaking Triad tradition and extending his term. Meanwhile Jimmy is trying to set himself up as a legitimate businessman in China and move away from the Triad. He finds that government officials will only work with him if he takes the chair in his Triad.

      So the stage is set for crosses, double-crosses and dealings with Triad "uncles" and cold-blooded subordinates.

      "Triad Election", also known as "Election 2", is never less than engrossing and captivating. It's one of the best Triad films I've seen.
      7moimoichan6

      Johnny To, the Godfather of Hong-Kong ?

      It's always nice to fallow the evolution of some characters through the years from films to films. You have the impression to see old friends again after a long separation. But in the triad world of "Election 2", this friends are rather bad and dangerous, and the two years that separate this second opus from the first haven't really improve, nor their friendship, nor the situation. If the first "Election" already was a death fight in order to elect the boss of a important HK triad, this one, setting two years after, is more a complete blood bath, where the most barbarian acts are tolerated. The old triad traditions, that manage to contain the savagery of the characters in the first movie, don't belong to the modern world anymore, for the opening of the Chinese market to the Triads in 1997 completely changes its face.

      The characters who manage to survive to the first movie are now about to face a new election, which opposes this time Lok, who wants to be reelected and the young Jimmy, who's quite reluctant to become the new boos, but has to win the election, in order to become a traditional business man in two years. In this second movie, the characters have much more elaborated than in the first one, for they're acting in a tragedy play, with much more powerful actors than them.

      Lok isn't the calm and self-control man he once was, he's now obsessed with power and greed. And Jimmy is the classical tragic Corleone character of a gangster movie, who wants to go straight, but only goes deeper and deeper in the evil world of the Triad.

      As well as the characters, the political aspect of the movie is also well develops. If the first film mostly deals with ancestral Trial rituals, the second one brings a contemporary point of view on this, and lights the links between HK Triads and Chinese government, which really control them since 1997.

      This movie is also more violent than the first, guns appear (whereas they were inexistent in "Election 1"), and a magisterially gore torture scene (with dog and human food...) greatly increase the emotional impact of the movie and underlines the abominations man is able to do in order to archive his need of power.

      All this elements makes "Election 2" a entertaining and interesting movie, and elects Jhonny To as one of the most interesting filmmaker of Hong-Kong. But his very classical direction (the movie always looks like a classical 90's HK polar), and storyline (the story of Jimmy is very similar to the Michael Corleone one, with some Melvillle elements, and a soundtrack very similar to the one you can find in Corean Thrillers) makes him a lot less original, than directors like Wong Kar-Wai or Hark Tsui, who is always the godfather of HK cinema.
      9jimniexperience

      Johnnie To Gangster Movies

      Aka Election 2 -- continuation of crime drama

      It's Election time again , and this time the lead candidates are Kun - the Baton retriever who served jail time for running over cop , and Jimmy - the leading money-maker in the Wo-Sing and Society Favorite ..

      Jimmy doesn't want to run for prez , he wants to go clean as a businessman . But after getting busted in undercover sting, he's coerced by the head Inspector to become the new Chairman if he has any dreams of running business on his grounds .

      Lok on the other hand , doesn't want to give up power either ,, and is plotting a second term which is against Society rules ... As the time ticks closer things get more and more antsy

      9/10

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      Storyline

      Edit

      Did you know

      Edit
      • Trivia
        The film was shown Out of Competition (midnight screening) at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. The film was shown in Grand Theatre Lumiere, the most prestigious theater at Cannes.
      • Goofs
        When Jet is attacking Long Hair from behind with a machete, he slices his neck but there is no blood on the blade, and Long Hair is not bleeding out from his wound.
      • Quotes

        Mr. Shi: From now on, you're welcome in China as tourists. But you can't do business here.

        Jimmy: Why?

        Mr. Shi: It's our policy.

        Jimmy: Mr. Shu is also a gangster. Why can he do business in China?

        Mr. Shi: We made a deal, and he's a patriot.

        Jimmy: I can make you a deal. I can be a patriot.

        Mr. Shi: What's your rank in Wo Sing? Not its Chairman?

        Jimmy: If I run for Chairman, will you give me what I want?

      • Connections
        Featured in Johnnie Got His Gun! (2010)

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      FAQ19

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      Details

      Edit
      • Release date
        • January 10, 2007 (France)
      • Country of origin
        • Hong Kong
      • Official sites
        • MySpace
        • Official site
      • Languages
        • Mandarin
        • Cantonese
      • Also known as
        • Triad Election
      • Production companies
        • China Star Entertainment
        • One Hundred Years of Film Company
        • Milky Way Image Company
      • See more company credits at IMDbPro

      Box office

      Edit
      • Gross US & Canada
        • $55,758
      • Opening weekend US & Canada
        • $10,811
        • Apr 29, 2007
      • Gross worldwide
        • $1,836,534
      See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

      Tech specs

      Edit
      • Runtime
        • 1h 33m(93 min)
      • Color
        • Color
        • Black and White
      • Sound mix
        • DTS
        • Dolby Digital
      • Aspect ratio
        • 2.35 : 1

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