The Insider

Policeman Don Lee (Nick Cheung) often works with informants but numerous too-close calls and failed missions cause him to see the world as one betrayal after another -- then he meets Guy, and is given a new chance to change his views.

I have to give credit to the folks at Well Go USA. I have been reviewing the films they distribute for a while now, and they have been consistently good. "Stool Pigeon" is no exception, adding the genre of police action to the martial arts stories they have delivered us in the past. I assume not all Asian films are this good (in fact, I know they are not), so whoever does acquisitions for Well Go needs a raise.

What is this film? A bit of mystery, a lot of action, a crime thriller. It really should appeal to a wide audience. If you like films like "French Connection" or "Snatch", I think this will be your film. While not quite a masterpiece, it really does tell a strong, interesting and emotional story. It is a film I am eager to watch a second time.

The DVD/BD (it comes as a combo pack) has some nice features on, most notably the variety of languages and subtitles. You might prefer Cantonese with English subtitles. Perhaps you prefer English dubbing. Then again, maybe you speak Cantonese and would rather watch it without dubbing or subs... you are able to do any of these.

The term/title itself gets explained in the movie, which you should watch if you like Hong Kong action cinema in general. While most people are looking for the new John Woo (movie) or the new Johnnie To (movie), a veteran filmmaker almost slipped under the radar. And it would be a shame if you'd miss out on this one.

Action packed, but still with character driven plot(s), this will not let you rest easy. There is always moral dilemma involved and of course it is difficult to watch our hero go through some of the trials and tribulations he has to go through (and maybe not all that is supposed to be good, is actually good). That is another thing that you either love or hate. Thank you Dante Lam for this excellent movie

Dante Lam has found something of a creative muse in writer Jack Ng of late, and their latest "The Stool Pigeon" marks their fourth straight collaboration together. It is also crafted out of the same mould as their earlier "Beast Stalker", "Sniper" and "Fire of Conscience", and audiences who have enjoyed the morally ambiguous characters and their dilemmas in these male-driven films will certainly enjoy this latest.

Reuniting the duo of Nick Cheung and Nicolas Tse from "Beast Stalker", Lam reverses the good guy-bad guy roles played by Cheung and Tse earlier. In this film, Cheung is on the right side of the law- he plays Detective Don Lee, a cop with his conscience wracked by guilt from the fate of his last stool pigeon (or slang for 'informant'). Jabber (played by Lam regular Liu Kai-Chi) was almost slashed to death after his cover was blown, and Don counts himself responsible for making the executive decision that blew Jabber's cover.

Tse is the ex-convict Ghost, whom Don seeks out to be his new informant after police receive word that a wanted robber Barbarian (Lu Yi) is back in town for another heist. Ghost needs money to pay off his father's debt to a loanshark, and reluctantly agrees despite being fully aware of the risks. For a good first hour, Lam meticulously sketches out the relationship between Don and Ghost- opposites in the eye of the law, but forced by circumstance to befriend and even trust each other.

A scene where Don teaches his fellow officers how to manage their informants illustrates this conflict beautifully- he tells them they have to win the trust of their stool pigeons so they can get as much intel as possible, but not to get too friendly at the same time for they may have to make difficult decisions in the line of duty. It is an unenviable position that Don himself knows personally, and many of the film's most poignant scenes come from Don's regular visits to Jabber who has since become a vagabond.

Besides delineating the complex relationship between police and informant, Lam also takes care to develop his characters. Don's frequent visits to a dance studio hint of a personal tragedy that is only revealed later; and Ghost's feelings for Barbarian's girlfriend, Dee (Kwai Lun-mei), only make it more difficult for him to extricate himself later on. The characters in Lam's films have always been flawed in one way or another, but the attention that Lam pays this time round to his two central characters- Don and Ghost- ranks among one of his best.

Amply deserving of praise too are Cheung and Tse. Having won Best Actor at both the Hong Kong Film Awards and Golden Horse Awards for his role in "Beast Stalker", Cheung turns in a wonderfully subtle performance here that conveys his character's anguish both in his line of work and his personal life. Because Cheung's acting is more restrained here, Tse gets the chance to be in the spotlight- and he more than delivers in a nuanced portrayal that fleshes out Ghost's struggles tiptoeing on the fine line of the law.

Lam brings the intricately and impeccably plotted first half to a head in the next hour of the film, and audiences familiar with Lam's films may naturally be expecting big-scale action sequences like those in "Sniper"or even "Fire of Conscience". But perhaps surprisingly, he doesn't give his audience the kind of visceral gratification this time round, and some may find his unusual restraint a little frustrating.

Not to say that he has lost his flair- an exciting foot chase down the tight cramped aisles of Hong Kong's street markets culminating in a midday car chase will set to rest any such doubts- nor that this isn't a taut thriller. It is both, but Lam often ratchets up the tension before an impending action scene and then defuses it without his usual signature guns-and-bullets extravanganza.

It is still no reason why you should miss this thriller. While it doesn't feature as much by way of action as one would expect from a usual Dante Lam film, its strong character-driven drama still packs a solid punch. At a time when the Hong Kong film industry seems inundated by big-budget China co-productions, Dante has stuck to his guns to deliver a gritty true-blue Hong Kong cop thriller set entirely in the iconic streets of Kowloon. In a year of lean offerings from Hong Kong, this will probably go down as one of the year's best.

"In STALKER, Nicholas Tse plays a straight-arrow police sergeant, pitched against Nicky Cheung's ruthless, one-eyed kidnapper; whereas in PIGEON, the shoe is on the other foot, Cheung is a righteous police detective and Tse is the debt-ridden, ex-con stoolie he needs to protect from a dangerous gang of armed robbers. Both actors show confidence and versatility in their dual transitions. Cheung excels in a beastly, menacing presence in STALKER that the audience has never seen before, then morphs into a bespectacled, spiffy officer of the law whose reticent appearance dissembles his inner conflict; Tse is a single-minded redemption-seeking hot-head in STALKER, sometimes he can be schmaltzy, but goes low-key and quietly affecting in PIGEON where he really catches audience off guard for a maturer performance that elicits our commiserations."

read my full review on my blog: cinema omnivore, thanks.

THIS Dante Lam-Jack Ng collaboration smacks of the 2002 hit "Infernal Affairs". After watching it, I get the feeling that some Hollywood studio would be buying the rights for a remake, just like it had been done with "The Departed", Martin Scorsese's 2006 remake of "Infernal Affairs".

After "Beast Stalker" (2008), "Sniper" (2009) and "Fire of Conscience", "Stool Pigeon" looks set to cap Lam's career as film-maker. It grips its viewers from start to end - and never lets go! Police Inspector Don Lee (Nick Cheung) relies very much on his 'stool pigeons' to provide information for his drugs and criminal cases. However, an act of betrayal involving his last informant (played by Liu Kai Chi) leaves him wrecked with guilt. Don resolves to be more careful with his next 'stoolie', an ex-convict nicknamed Ghost (Nicholas Tse), whom Don plans to plant as getaway driver for a gold heist gang led by Barbarian (Lu Yi). Ghost, a street-racer who is determined to save his sister from loan sharks, looks like the man for the job. Problem is can they trust each other enough to see the job through? Movies about snitches, moles and informers are nothing new. However, Lam gives the genre a new dimension by delving deeper into the intricate relationship between police handler and informant. One sequence has Don telling his rookie officers to be friendly with their informers to win their trust, but not to be too close or they would lose their objectivity. This, of course, is easier said than done when lives and limbs are at stake.

Lam also takes great care with character development. The backgrounds of Don Lee and Ghost are nicely fleshed out (with even a twist or two) - and there is an emotional connection between Ghost and Barbarian's girlfriend Dee (Kwai Lun-Mei). This romantic touch not only lends narrative power and depth to the movie but also sets up the groundwork for the explosive and breath-taking ending.

Of course, for any movie to be compelling, it has to have a great cast. Nick Cheung has won Best Actor awards for his role in Beast Stalker and now it looks like Tse's turn. Nicholas gives Ghost such a powerful portrayal that it reminds me of a young Robert De Niro. His character is so full of anger and angst that it threatens to explode at any time. Cheung, as expected, has the audience rooting for him all the time, while Kwai steals the show every time she appears as the scheming gang moll.

There are some awkward and over-the-top scenes here and there but they do not mar the overall flow of the movie. - By LIM CHANG MOH (limchangmoh.blogspot.com)