XoWizIama Excellent adaptation.

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Mopkin TheHopkin Johnnie To's Drug War is a very well shot, and well directed film about a Chinese police operation to take down a drug operation. Timmy, a high level meth dealer, is busted after his drug factory explodes, and he crashes his car trying to escape. The police agree to waive the death penalty if he helps take down the operation he is a part of. This leads to an intricate operation from Captain Zhang and his fellow officers. The operation takes them all through the supply chain, as they try and net the organizations kingpins and bust them all.This movie was excellent. It was shot very well, showcasing the smoggy locales of big-city China. It was excellently choreographed, with the police operations especially looking professional and intricate. The action was well done, with gritty and well shot gun fights. The acting on all sides ranged from good to great, with some of the minor police officers and gangsters under performing, but some great performances from the films protagonists. Really, most of the elements of this film, from the story, to the direction, to the shots, to the action, was well done.Two small complaints on my part keep the film from a higher rating. The first is the sound direction. It never wowed me like some other elements of the film. The gun shots were hollow and underwhelming, and lacked meat. The street sounds were muted. It just felt a little weak. The second complaint I have already mentioned above. Some of the minor characters were not acted well or fleshed out, so in the final showdown, when police officers you have been seeing the entire film go down, I felt little connection to them, and sometimes even had to look back to remember why they were there in the first place! All in all, an 8 out of 10 is a solid film. It is exciting, taught, suspenseful and has excellent direction, action choreography, and is shot well. A few minor complaints aside, this is a fabulous crime drama, and worthy of your attention if you enjoy crime films, or are into Asian cinema. I certainly enjoyed it, and look forward to giving it a watch again in the future.

Dantae Hiruma I admit that after reading some great reviews, I went into this movie expecting big things, and that might be why I felt so led down.This is by no means a bad movie. There are some good twists here and there, accompanied by a gritty and truthful style of directing unseen it most Hollywood products. I mean in what serious Hollywood movie can you see cops pulling over to pee in the middle of the road. The acting by the two lead actors was great. Loius Koo was subtle as the villain, while Honglei Sun saved his boring role with his flexibility. I also like the way some villains were portrayed, showing them as more humane than in most other products from mainland China. But ultimately, it still doesn't live up to its potential. The cops in this movie, staying true to Chinese propaganda, are all one- dimensional heroes who are always willing to sacrificed for the greater good. There were no internal conflicts, no questions asked, not even some hesitations. They all just quietly do what they're told. In fact, most of them maintained only one facial expression throughout the movie: anger. They were mere puppets used to show the movie's story, not realistic and engaging characters. And of course, the ending with the good triumph over evil can be seen from miles away, despite the director's effort to spice it up.Considered the strict media censorship in China, this was probably the best the director could do, but it's still a waste of a nice premise. That's why I'm really looking forward to the upcoming South Korean remake.

space_base After his meth lab explodes, leaving him scarred and his wife dead, Timmy Choi (Louis Koo) is apprehended by the Chinese police for a crime that warrants the death penalty. In the custody of Captain Zhang (Sun Honglei), Choi sees only one option to avoid execution; turn traitor and help Zhang's undercover unit bring down the powerful cartel that he has been cooking for. As the stakes get higher, it becomes increasing unclear as to who has the upper hand, and who will dictate the endgame. Director Johnny To is a master of the crime film, and with "Drug War," he's created a near masterpiece of the genre. He never convinces us of being in anything but complete control of his multifaceted thriller, and exudes an unparallelled confidence in every scene and phenomenal set piece.To's electrifying picture recalls some of the best work of his great contemporaries. "Drug War" possesses the technical brilliance of Scorsese's "The Departed," the ground-level knowledge and surveillance of David Simon's "The Wire," the gritty realism of Michael Mann's best work, and by the end the blistering, double-fisted action of John Woo's prime. These elements don't come together as a derivative; To is a filmmaker at the top of his game, and makes the most of his cast, his influences, the Mainland setting, and a little of the grotesquerie that often has Hollywood shuddering; in a singular whole. Disparate from most Hong Kong action films, "Drug War" is a methodical, meticulous procedural first, exploiting a street-smart screenplay that knows the Chinese crime scene; and if that statement is indeed false, it never feels less than authentic. Much of the intensity derives from dialogue exchanges, and how rigorous both the cops and criminals try to not get made. Because of this well paced, equally well played dynamic, we never know who we should root for, and that's exactly the point. Mr. To's drama is incredibly intense... but then he pulls out all the stops. The last 20 minutes of "Drug War" is the show-stopping action set piece of the year. An extended shootout that's brutal, ambitious, and a masterpiece of it's kind. It's a marvel of physical filmmaking that also works as an unexpected plot device, violently flipping our conceived notions of these characters on their ear; clearing the way for a fittingly ironic, ice-cold conclusion."Drug War" might just be the best pure crime film of 2013. Technically and narratively stellar, it already seems like a minor classic of the genre.

cadillac20 I'm not terribly familiar with Johnnie To's work, though I know he is one of China's biggest directors. Drug War is his latest film, a critically hailed masterpiece, so to speak, that rivals some of the best American crime films. And for the most part, it is a very good film. Gripping, with a tight rope plot written like a maze, Drug War very rarely lets up as it navigates from one stage of the plot to the other.The film opens with Timmy Choi, a drug manufacturer, driving erratically until he runs through the entrance of a restaurant until he ends up in the hands of Captain Zhang. For dealing the amount of drugs that Choi is responsible for, the penalty is death, but Choi cuts a deal to help the police bring down a drug lord responsible for the sale of the narcotics. What follows is a near non-stop mission to get into the heart of the drug dealers and bring them down.Drug War is the kind of crime action thriller that is very audience pleasing. There is plenty of suspense and mystery, as you're always on the edge of your seat in anticipation of what will happen next. It doesn't help that you're never quite sure who to trust or who will do what, especially Choi, who remains shifty and unsure. Sun Honglei is especially entertaining as the no nonsense Zhang, whose smart and constantly does his best to stay one step ahead of all those he's trying to bring down, including Choi. The writing for the film is very intricate and full of surprises. Coupling this are several action set pieces, the highlight of which are a middle section involving the police and two very capable partners of Choi and the ending, which is an absolutely crazy finale for this film.If I have one real complaint about the film, it's the lack of depth. For all the technical skill and excellent writing and plot, we really don't get to know any of our characters. There is an attempt to make Choi somewhat sympathetic through a plot point about his wife, but Choi himself never really does much to make us like him or get us on his side. The same can be said about Zhang, who is little more than a hard nose cop trying to catch the criminals. There's never any real insight into either of these men, let alone the rest of the cast. It's a very basic and shallow cops and criminals tale, albeit, a very well written and produced one.But these are minor complaints in the face of the entertainment at hand. This is arguably one of the best films of 2013, even at it's rating, and I urge anyone looking for to make up for some theatrical thuds to check this out. It's well worth it.