TONYLEUNG.INFO
THIS IS AN ARCHIVAL DISCUSSION BOARD (2003-2012)
 
THIS IS AN ARCHIVAL DISCUSSION BOARD (2003-2012)
CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE NEW BOARD
CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE NEW BOARD

Review of IA III

 
   www.tonyleung.info Forum Index -> Movie Reviews by the fans / fanfics
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
ribi



Joined: 23 Sep 2003
Posts: 115
Location: ribi land

PostPosted: Sat Dec 13, 2003 6:31 am    Post subject: Review of IA III

Watched Infernal Affairs III today.
It's brilliant. It's as good as the first instalment.
The plot is so good that it left me in shock after I've watched it.

If Infernal Affairs I was Tony Leung's vehicle, then Infernal Affairs III is Andy Lau's masterpiece.
Yan (Tony Leung) didn't have much screen time as in IA I but his character has a surprising lighter side than the one portrayed in IA I which is funny as well. I enjoyed seeing Yan being cheeky and humorous.
As for Ming (Andy Lau), he is a complicated character to begin with and this third instalment further illustrated the inner struggle that he has to deal with in wanting to be good but being left with no space to manuoevre, he ends up in self-destruction.

However, I must say that IA III is confusing in its initial minutes. I was left wondering and guessing half the time what the extra characters were doing and their motives but it all worked out brilliantly in the end.
Wing (Leon Lai) is an enigma and he left me guessing right to the end where his inclinations lie. Lai's acting, while not as polished as Lau and Leung even though he won the Golden Horse (and Lau hasn't to date), is good for the character because his lack of facial expressions left me guessing what his motive in acting the way he did was. I kept thinking that he's something deeper, which he is, but I didn't see it coming in that direction. ^^
As for Shen Cheng (Chen Daoming), I'm still guessing what he does in the movie but the unravelling at the end was a curve ball. That's why I was shocked but in the pleasant sort of way.

The only part in IA III I didn't really like was the Dr. Lee (Kelly Chen) part - I think maybe the role could have gone to someone better able to express her emotions because Dr. Lee is the cornerstone of the two men but Kelly Chen somehow didn't manage to get through to me that she was capable of bringing out the inner pain of both men.
I was surprised that Sammi Cheng only came out in the end because I've read about how she had to sacrifice her sleep to do Andy the favour to continue into IA III as his wife. She got like 3 minutes of screen time and even then, that 3 minutes was negligible simply because it didn't take a lot of effort to act those 3 minutes. -_-

The end was very good.
Spoiler here......
DON'T READ IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE MOVIE AND DON'T WANT TO KNOW THE ENDING!



I didn't like the fact that Ming survived but then again, it would fit in with the idea of Mou Gan Dou (Infernal Affairs' Cantonese title) - endless suffering in the Buddhist sutras. That Ming has survived in the end meant that his suffering would never end. Realising that, it made the movie much better and ties up with the whole idea of the struggle between good and bad and the fact that perhaps, there isn't a whole good and there isn't a whole bad afterall.
Ming's need to be good is a gnawing pain and it is almost painful watching him self-destruct in his quest to be the 'good man' and watching him deteriorate and become delusional in the end. I am on his side.

I'm just waiting for the DVD to come out and believe it or not, I'm gonna get myself 2 copies of it.
It is that good a movie.
I haven't felt that satisfied with a movie in a long time since IA I.
I think I shall make it a point to watch it another time again.
_________________


Longevity is a suffering in hell
~Infernal Affairs~
Back to top
Guest






PostPosted: Sat Dec 13, 2003 4:30 pm    Post subject:

Nicely written review!
Back to top
Guest






PostPosted: Thu Feb 19, 2004 11:33 am    Post subject: review of Ia3

Exclamation Cool Ribi--I 've been 'watching' IA3 in heavy rotation--& I agree with you implicitly. Your 'review' is well-thought out.balanced & 'unbiased' which is truly the 'way to 'watch' a film.

Wink Wink Cool To you..salute' !
Back to top
Display posts from previous:   
   www.tonyleung.info Forum Index -> Movie Reviews by the fans / fanfics All times are GMT - 8 Hours
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group