Product Details

• Actors: Louis Koo, Suet Lam, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Siu-Fai Cheung, Simon Yam
• Directors: Johnnie To
• Writers: Nai-Hoi Yau, Tin-Shing Yip
• Producers: Johnnie To, Catherine Chan, Dennis Law, Elos Gallo, Kok Leung Kuk
• Format: Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: Cantonese
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Tartan Video
• DVD Release Date: November 6, 2007
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000UNYJOU
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #47,512 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  Movies & TV > Action & Adventure > Hong Kong Action > Yam, Simon

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Every two years the senior members of the Wo Shing Triad, the oldest gang in Hong Kong, elect an up-and-coming younger boss as their chairman. The two candidates they are voting on couldn’t be farther apart in personality; Lok (Simon Yam) is a levelheaded businessman and Big D (Tony Leung Ka-Fai) is a loud, obnoxious, violent criminal. When the voting does not go how some people would have liked, lines are divided and a gang war begins to form.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First in the series from the modern master of Hong Kong cinema., December 13, 2007

By	MutantChaos - See all my reviews

Election is the first film in this gangster series (Triad Election is the sequel) from the greatest filmmaker currently working in Hong Kong, Johnnie To. If you aren't familiar with Mr. To's work, imagine John Woo with less action (at least in this film - watch Exiled, another top notch film, for more action oriented To fare) but a much better handle on story and storytelling than Woo ever had. This is less action/thrills oriented than Infernal Affairs (which it is sometimes compared to), but I think Election is a much better film.

The simple synopsis - two mob bosses, one all business and one all bluster, compete for leadership of their gang. When the election doesn't go the way some want, all hell breaks loose, threatening the stability of the already teetering Hong Kong underworld.

Tony Leung Ka Fai won the acting award for his Nicholson-esqe over-the-top performance as the loud mouth, obnoxious mob boss, but it is Simon Yam that really shines in his role - the transformation of his character over the course of this film is a 2-hour acting lesson that totally blew me away.

The U.S. DVD has all the special features that were on the Hong Kong 2-Disc Special Edition, but at a nicer price, and the transfer is excellent. I can't recommend this film enough, and the Tartan DVD is the way to go.

Attention Canadians - the Canadian release (not from Tartan) is bare-bones, this is the one to get if you are interested in special features!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good crime drama well worth watching if only to set up the superb sequel, December 28, 2007

By	Trevor Willsmer (London, England) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Despite a tight narrative, Johnnie To's Election feels at times like it was once a longer picture, with many characters and plot strands abandoned or ultimately unresolved. Some of these are dealt with in the truly excellent and far superior sequel, Election 2: Harmony is a Virtue/Triad Election, but it's still a dependably enthralling thriller about a contested Triad election that bypasses the usual shootouts and explosions (though not the violence) in favor of constantly shifting alliances that can turn in the time it takes to make a phone call. It's also a film where the most ruthless character isn't always the most threatening one, as the chilling ending makes only too clear: one can imagine a lifetime of psychological counselling being necessary for all the trauma that one inflicts on one unfortunate bystander.

Extras aren't over-plentiful, but the interviews with Johnnie To, Simon Yam (always at his best under To's direction, and possibly never better here), Wang Tianlin and Tony Leung Ka Fei are more in-depth and thoughtful than usual. Also included are a brief featurette, stills galleries and trailers.

4.0 out of 5 stars I Eat Porcelain Spoon's for Breakfast!, April 6, 2009

By	Ahmad Jordan "Ahmad Jordan" (Bufalo, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Man...this one gave me goose bumps. The story alone was enough to rattle my cage. But the most haunting element of this crime drama is the mood. There's a silence that underscores the entire film that put me in the mind of Michael Mann's "Heat." The edges of these hard characters is palpable. There's a memorable scene where a character Lok takes a porcelain spoon, breaks it, grinds it up and eats it. There's no ambient background music to go with it. Just his cold eyes and the crunch of porcelain against teeth. Lawd that scene kinda shook me up. Definitely a film I'd recommend. Can't wait for what comes after this one...