The title is kinda funny when you think about it.I guess HK back in the day was a really shitty place to live, hell it might still be today what the fuck do I know? Anyway we're told in an opening montage that back in the 60's and 70's over 90% of HK law enforcement was on the bribe payroll and that a huge mafia-style gang controlled everything. It even regulated how many whorehouses, gambling joints and drug dens each street could have to stop turf wars.
At the top of the ladder was police chief Lak. He controlled everything. He had a money man, Gold, who ran all the collections and dealt out the bribe payroll. Then you have Gale who is Lak's right hand man and even had a collection of 9 wives that are actually the other mafia dudes mistresses or ex-mistresses. The first half of the movie (and the best part) shows how the police run everything, then during the second half the British government creates the ICAC who's goal is to put an end to the police corruption.
The subject matter is very interesting (I would love to read a book about it), but director/writer Jing Wong (who has directed nearly a hundred movies in the last 30 years!!!) would not be my first choice to make a movie with such a rich and complex story. He does a good job, but I never felt like the film had any real soul. Another problem I had was the film never had any closure, it just ended.
Worth watching if your into Asian crime dramas, but it's nothing to get overly excited about. Great cast and performances by all, but I'd still love to see this story remade with a different director and a better script.
