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Election
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List Price: $19.95
Our Price: $17.99
Your Save: $ 1.96 ( 10% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Tartan Video
Starring: Simon Yam, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Louis Koo, Nick Cheung, Ka Tung Lam
Directed By: Johnny To
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audience Rating: Unrated
Binding: DVD
EAN: 0842498030462
Format: DVD-Video
Label: Tartan Video
Manufacturer: Tartan Video
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Tartan Video
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2007-11-06
Running Time: 97
Studio: Tartan Video
Theatrical Release Date: 2005
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Editorial Reviews:
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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.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: It's a crime drama.
Comment: If you're looking for action here, you'll be disappointed. There are some killing scenes but they do not contain big explosions or kung fu fighting. If you like character development, psychology, betrayal and twisted plots, you'll like this movie.
It's worth watching.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A good crime drama well worth watching if only to set up the superb sequel
Comment: 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.
Customer Rating:
Summary: First in the series from the modern master of Hong Kong cinema.
Comment: 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!
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