Who's in It: Louis Koo, Simon Yam
The Basics: It's the sequel to director Johnny To's earlier crime drama Election (not the Reese Witherspoon one) and is known as Election 2 in just about every other country. Now for what it's about: A young gangster trying to escape the mob and reinvent himself as a real estate mogul is pulled into service by his Triad to go up against the current chairman instead. He's justifiably unhappy about this. Or is he?
What's the Deal? Maybe you don't know much about this director. But if you like Hong Kong action movies where everyone's constantly killing each other in a ballet of bullets (and other weapons), then this guy is your new Francis Ford Coppola. Or John Woo. Or fill in the blank with your favorite action director. He's the real deal, and his movies are crazily entertaining and well-made, not just shlocky and violent. They're cool, witty and tightly wound up.
How It's Like (and Not Like) The Sopranos: The story moves along not in the typical action-movie way but in the almost operatic manner of the coolest American mob stories, like The Godfather trilogy and The Sopranos. And what makes it distinct is its lack of empathy. These aren't borderline adorable sociopaths like Tony Soprano. This is a ruthless, cold business, and these guys are just workers, clocking in and taking out the people who get in their way.
Who Should See It: Style fiends who miss the way Woo used to do it.
Who Shouldn't See It: People easily offended or made queasy by lots of violence. You think maybe you're not going to get much because there really is a lot of talking happening in the early sequences. But when the blood flows, it's a volcano erupting.