SYNOPSIS:
Undercover Nick spent 8 years in a heroin syndicate, working
his way up from a street dealer to a managerial post. He is
in charge of handling the logistics for Jong, the biggest
player in the local heroin market. Nick is waiting for a chance
to nab the syndicate but evidences are hard to gather as everything
is kept confidential. His opportunity comes when Jang makes
Nick his protege...
MOVIE
REVIEW
One
of the most arresting sight in Protégé for me,
I have to admit, is Zhang Jing Chu – Hollywood’s
next Ziyi Zhang. Trust me, spaghetti straps and cargo pants
have never looked better. Another is Louis Koo’s disgusting
turn as a drug junkie and all-star jerk. I could not recall
Louis looking more convincing in a role and his character
provided an interesting counterpoint to Daniel Wu’s
morally upright character.
That said,
Protégé is not a great movie and has nothing
on Derek Yee’s other film, One Night in Mongkok. While
the stellar cast discharged their roles well, its overbearing
moralistic tone made the film more like a docudrama.
Another
weak link is the fact that Daniel Wu’s character is
an undercover cop. Besides drawing unneeded comparisons with
Infernal Affairs (something that afflicts all Hong Kong movies
featuring undercover cops these days), the storyline really
took much away from the introspective perspective in the movie.
If Daniel Wu’s character had been a real gangster who
witnessed his girlfriend’s self-destruction by drug
consumption, his pain and subsequent betrayal of his boss
would better highlight the morality issues in the drug business.
But I am neither Derek Yee nor Peter Chan, so here you are.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
Includes trailers for Protégé, One
Last Dance and Twins Mission, as well as the perfunctory Protégé
making of.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Visual transfer is acceptable and audio selections included
English subtitles and Cantonese 5.1.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Lim Mun Pong
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