Two sides of the same coin

Film: Mou gaan dou(2002)
English title: Infernal Affairs
Director: Wai-keung Lau & Siu Fai Mak

This film is an absolute classic. It is the story of a mole in a police department and an undercover cop in a mafia gang. Their objectives are the same. To find who is the cop and who is the mole. The acting is brilliant. The directors take all their time in building up the plot. They take utmost care in their treatment of a simple story. And turn it into a twisted tale of honor and betrayal. The two protagonists walk almost the same road for a long long time. They play with the faith of one group of men and show utmost loyalty to another. The only thin line of difference between them is the sense of what is right and what is wrong. And when they cross each other's paths, only sparks follow. The film delves into the psyche of the two men, their emotions and still the tightly woven script doesn't allow the drama and the tension to wither away. It only makes the viewer wait eagerly for the two sequels.




Film: The departed(2006)
Director: Martin Scorsese

This is Scorsese's second attempt in adapting an older film. He didn't make the mark with "Cape fear". And he comes nowhere near with "The departed". This, indeed is an absolute waste of a film. Adopted from "Infernal affairs", the storyline has nothing new to offer. The major scenes are complete rip-offs. Matt damon, Mark Wahlberg are hard to watch. DiCaprio's whining character is still the best performance in this film. Nicholson is just watchable. The direction is wayward to say the least. For example, the undercover cop infiltrates the gang and becomes an important part in only a few months time. Give me a break! Both the protagonists are extremely one dimensional. They ar either good or bad. There's no shade of gray in them. Unlike the original, Scorsese fails to play around with questions of morality and trust. He, in turn makes the film a typical hollywoodish bad guy vs good guy flick. This film, IMHO is Scorsese's weakest production. Ever. And to think of it, he bagged an oscar for this!! Damned be the oscars!!

Trivia: "The departed" ranks 45th in IMDB's top 250 list. And "Infernal affairs" ranks a low 232. Guess I don't know much about films :(