Infernal Affairs
| Infernal Affairs | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Traditional | |
| Simplified | |
| Directed by |
Andrew Lau Alan Mak |
| Produced by | Andrew Lau |
| Written by | Alan Mak Felix Chong |
| Starring |
Andy Lau Tony Leung Anthony Wong Eric Tsang |
| Music by | Chan Kwong-wing |
| Cinematography | Andrew Lau Lai Yiu-fai |
| Edited by |
Danny Pang Curran Pang |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | Media Asia Distribution |
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Release date
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Running time
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101 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
| Budget | US$6,428,966 |
| Box office | HK$55,057,176 |
| Infernal Affairs | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | |||||||||||
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| Simplified Chinese | |||||||||||
| Literal meaning | "Unceasing Path" | ||||||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
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| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Wú Jiān Dào |
| Yue: Cantonese | |
| Jyutping | Mou4 Gaan3 Dou6 |
Infernal Affairs is a 2002 Hong Kong crime-thriller film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It tells the story of a police officer who infiltrates a triad, and a police officer secretly working for the same gang. The Chinese title means "The Unceasing Path", a reference to Avici, the lowest level of Hell in Buddhism, where one endures suffering incessantly. The English title is a word play, combining the law enforcement term "internal affairs" – typically the division of any law enforcement agency that would be responsible for (among other things) finding a mole – with the adjective "infernal", meant in this case as a reference not to fires or infernos in general, but specifically to the inferno of Hell ("Inferno" being the Italian word for "Hell"). Thus, the English title is both a phonetic pun and – like the Chinese title – an allusion to a place or condition of eternal suffering. Infernal Affairs is the first in the Infernal Affairs series and was followed by Infernal Affairs II and Infernal Affairs III.
Pre-release publicity focused on its star-studded cast (Andy Lau, Tony Leung, Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang, Kelly Chen and Sammi Cheng), although the film also received critical acclaim for its original plot and its concise and swift storytelling style.
The film had been selected as the Hong Kong entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 76th Academy Awards but it was not nominated. Miramax Films acquired the United States distribution rights of this film and gave it a limited US theatrical release in 2004.
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