Life Without Principle

Johnnie To takes a slight break from his typically mafia dramas and bases this film on the ongoing financial crisis. The film is split in to three intertwining strands… a bank teller turned financial advisor is forced to dump high risk mutual funds on unsuspecting clients to make her sale numbers. Panther, a small time crook, played with aplomb by Ching Wan Lau is running around trying to raise money to bail out his blood brother. A young police officer finds new demands on him as his wife wants to buy an expensive high rise apartment. The incident tying the threads together is the assault on a loan shark who was walking around with $10 million. Brilliantly directed by To as he moves the threads forward and back while slowly putting together the pieces of the puzzle.

Rating: * * *

Mad Detective

Calling Detective Bun (Ching Wan Lau) mad is an understatement. He is borderline psychotic with a mysterious second sight and deadly intuition that finds him solving hard to crack cases. But his antics soon escorts him out of the force with an early retirement. Years later he is called back by a rookie detective, Ho (Andy On), to help with a disappearance of another detective. And then you are treated the complete spectrum of Bun's insanity. An enjoyable albeit violent crime thriller that begs to be made in to a TV series.

Rating: * * *

Election

The Wo Shing triad have held elections to select their chairman for over 100 years. Now it is the turn of Big D (Tony Leung Ka Fai) and Lam (Simon Yam) to fight and bribe their way to the post. And even a democratically held election can be filled with strife and violence. A gritty and slick crime drama that will make you one with your couch.

Rating: * * *