We may think that an undercover cop finally returning to his real identity as a police officer is the closest thing to a “happily ever after” ending. However, director Herman Yau shows that it may be just the beginning of another nightmare in this tragic police drama. After spending eight years undercover, Hoi-sang (Nick Cheung) returns to a normal job in the police department. However, he is racked with guilt over betraying his friend in the criminal world, and his past in the criminal world makes him a target of distrust by his fellow cops. Yau leaves behind the gangster genre clichés for an insightful psychological exploration of a man whose sense of morality has been twisted forever in the name of justice. In its final frames, the film provides this interesting statistic: On average, a police officer only lasts three years in the police force after returning from an undercover assignment.

27/4

(Sun)

7:30pm

Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

Post-screening talk with Herman Yau