In terms of tempo, Johnny To’s Triad Election (2006) starts fairly slowly, but stay with it; the first act is like a serpent coiling back on itself to prepare to strike.  After it does, there is little or no let-up.  In fact, the non-horror audience may want to ask itself what level of violence it’s willing to endure, so harsh are some of the images, so cold is the tone.  Although Triad Election, a.k.a. Election 2, is a loose sequel, one does not need to have seen Election (2005) to enjoy it.  The characters, milieu, and themes will be recognizable to fans of HK cinema as well as to anyone familiar with Michael Corleone’s reluctant ascendancy to power in The Godfather (1972).

To’s wonderfully direct storytelling always seems to finds the perfect angle or composition to make his shots memorable without calling too much attention to the director’s hand.  His style seems to alternate between bold and restrained, and what’s most impressive is that his feel for the material leads him to make the right choice between the two in scene after scene.  In terms of production design and cinematography, there is a glossy sheen to much of the proceedings but one could not say that the film is overly stylized or preening.

Much of the key action takes place in cars and other vehicles, including one killing that will always stay with me, it is done with such negligent brutality.  The use of these moving vehicles throughout becomes an effective visual metaphor for the way that organized crime operates within society:  the killers and their bosses drive on the same streets that we do, but stay hidden safely inside their cars, passing by unnoticed. 

I’m not qualified to comment on the film’s realism in terms of how things are actually done in the triads, or any organized crime system for that matter, but the story certainly reflects a moviegoer’s sense of what is “real”; it lacks the operatic gestures, the glamorization of violence, the self-conscious romanticizing and other typical pitfalls of the gangster subgenre—yet still manages to be incredibly and completely absorbing.  In addition, there is also a political underpinning to the story that, although perhaps somewhat simplistic, is both believable and chilling; that is, it has the simplicity that true crime and corruption often seem to possess.

The DVD from Tartan Video also features some interesting actor interviews, in which To’s improvisational approach is commented upon.  Although as unscripted in some ways as Wong Kar-Wai’s movies, To’s work not only avoids any hints of random self-indulgence, but moreover manages to feel tight in the way that the thriller form demands.

Remarkable filmmaking any way you look at it.