Genre: Crime, Drama
Starring: Eric Tsang, Jordan Chan, Francis Ng, Shawn Yu, Julian Cheung
Release year: 2006
Language: Cantonese
Subtitle: English
SYNOPSIS:
Set in the darkened world of crime ruled by the various triad societies dominating every illegal business in Hong Kong. THE MOB is the most powerful and notorious gang member lead by Jim (Eric Tsang), Walter (Francis Ng), Tommy (Chi-Lam) and Fei (Jordan Chan). The police force headed by Inspector Wai (Miu Kiu-Wai) is consistently monitoring the group's activities. He launches Operation Crouching Tiger by sending over 1000 undercover cops hoping to infiltrate the whole organization. Aware of the situation, THE MOB realizes that these undercover cops could mean serious trouble. On the other hand, unless there are members who dare to bear witness against the MOB and no matter how many undercover cops Inspector Wai has inside THE MOB, he could never crush it.
RATING: ?/10
REVIEW:
What it is, however, is pretty entertaining. The film lacks much momentum, and even seems to meander, but there's involving and even fun stuff in the film's shifting focus. Some of the triad issues are played to comic effect, such as when Walter gets his assets frozen, his own triad followers try to escape paying his dinner bills. Likewise, triad boss Fei (Jordan Chan) is comically henpecked by his wife, and sometimes does his job in a hilariously poor manner. Fei is in charge of recruitment, but it's not very threatening when he recruits old men or guys who can't stop laughing to show up at tense restaurant-set standoffs. Wo Hu possesses an interesting take on the triad life, presenting triad members less like caricatures and more like regular guys. Jim is righteous and caring to a fault, and Walter spends a lot of time worrying about his violinist son, who, in an amusing bit of casting, is played by the same young actor who essayed Simon Yam's scarred son in the Election movies. Even the cartoonishly intense Tommy has a soft spot for his ailing mother.
This attention to ironic detail and human themes is what makes Wo Hu a surprising triad flick, though there are some details that seem suspiciously manufactured. Eric Tsang gets an odd romance with former Miss HK Sonja Kwok, who plays a perky window dresser that apparently comes from fantasy land. Her character is hard to buy because she's single, enormously pretty, adorably quirky, and actually finds Eric Tsang attractive. Still, despite the cheesy unbelievability of such a pairing, the actors make it work, and the romance does have some thematic payoff. One of the major concerns of Wo Hu is the good/bad dichotomy between cops and triads. Wai is supposed to be good, but he did some bad stuff while undercover, while both Jim and Walter are surprisingly decent guys beneath their triad titles. It helps that Jim and Walter are played by Eric Tsang and Francis Ng, both of whom bring humanity and heart to their characters. The two actors anchor the film with their sympathetic performances, but the rest of the cast helps too. Wo Hu is loaded with recognizable actors, most of whom bring instant presence to even the most minor characters.
There are a few more problems with the film. Some the script's drama is obvious and overdrawn, and Marco Mak's stylish direction occasionally crosses the line into laughably melodramatic. However, Mak also stages some startlingly dramatic sequences, including one brutal beating that gets its point across powerfully. Still, despite the flashes of violence, it's the quieter moments that manage to stick with the audience. At one point, Jim and Walter sit around and muse if they're really good guys, and the moment underlines what's enjoyable about Wo Hu. Even though they're supposed to be "bad" guys, the two men are really quite likable, such that it's easy to care for them when they finally meet their fates. Wo Hu's uneven direction and wandering focus prevent it from being rated as truly exceptional, but it's a clever and entertaining film worthy of the Hong Kong Cinema label. Wong Jing, we owe you an apology. (Kozo 2006)
Source: LoveHKFilm
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