Award-winning directors Derek Yee (One Nite in Mongkok) and Peter Chan (Perhaps Love) collaborate in a film about the drug trade, as director and producer respectively. A high-quality work that stands out from the abundant crime flicks produced in Hong Kong recently, Protege features three of Hong Kong's most popular actors - Andy Lau as a drug dealer, Louis Koo as a drug addict, and Daniel Wu as an undercover cop who becomes Andy Lau's protege. Actress Zhang Jingchu from Seven Swords holds her own portraying a drug addict, bringing alive a complex character.
Delving into the mysterious drug world, Protege scrutinizes all facets of a huge drug empire, and at the same time engages viewers with its effective storytelling. Multiple perspectives and location shooting in Thailand help develop the dramatic story. While giving meticulous details about the heroin trade to bring out an anti-drug message, Derek Yee also does not lose sight on narrative and characterization, dealing with a serious topic in an interesting and compelling manner.
Andy Lau previously worked with Derek Yee in Full Throttle in 1995. Daniel Wu also received much applause for his role in Yee's One Nite in Mongkok in 2004. Anita Yuen, who years ago earned a Best Actress statue through her performance in Yee's C'est la Vie, Mon Cherie, agreed to guest star in the film even though she was pregnant at the time. They now re-unite with the acclaimed director to intrigue movie fans with a film that is as eye-opening as it is entertaining.
