INFERNAL AFFAIRS

Infernal Affairs is a well-crafted psychological police thriller with an intricate moral game at its center. The opening can be confusing, but the drama soon reaches high gear as an undercover cop and a police mole try to uncover one another.

The film is relatively clean compared with contemporary American police thrillers, but its brief R-rated violence is very strong. It also includes drug trafficking, cocaine use, smoking, light obscenities, implied fornication, and Buddhist religious references.

The strongest moral thread belongs to Lau, who becomes disturbed by his crime boss’s brutality and tries to repent. His attempt to change is clumsy and tragic, but the film takes moral consequences seriously. Adults who can handle the content should find this an intense, worthwhile thriller; families with children or young teens should choose something else.

Chan Yan has spent ten years undercover inside the operation of a Hong Kong crime boss and is beginning to crack under the strain. Lau Ming, meanwhile, is a police lieutenant secretly working for that same boss.

When the crime boss realizes he has a mole, Yan volunteers to find the spy. At the same time, Superintendent Wong asks Lau to identify the mole inside the police department. Soon, both sides are hunting for the truth while hiding their own identities.

Three stars means this is a strong, effective thriller with some imperfections. The film is psychologically compelling, and its tense cat-and-mouse drama soon kicks into high gear after a somewhat confusing beginning.

Its moral conflict gives the suspense weight, especially as Lau becomes disturbed by the crime boss’s brutality and tries to change. The result is an intense, well-crafted police thriller that is relatively clean by comparison with contemporary American examples, though its brief violence is severe.

The film opens and closes with quotations from Buddha about living in continuous or eternal hell. It also includes a scene in which the crime boss prays to Buddha and says he is grateful that his prayers have been answered. The review notes that Buddhist hell differs from Christian teaching about hell.

Still, the film contains light redemptive and moral elements. Lau recognizes the evil surrounding him, becomes troubled by his boss’s brutality, and tries to repent. His attempt to change is easier said than done and ends in tragedy. The movie’s moral world is shaped by consequences, guilt, and the possibility of change, but its Buddhist references do not present the Christian understanding of sin, judgment, and redemption.

The film’s reminder that human life is temporary points beyond its religious framework: “the word of our God stands forever” (Isaiah 40:8).

Infernal Affairs is a tense, morally serious thriller with a confusing start, strong violence, and religious ideas that do not align with Christianity. For discerning adults, its craft and moral conflict make it WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY. For younger viewers, choose something else:.