“The Goldfinger” Theatrical Poster
It has been 19 years since Tony Leung (Happy Together) and Andy Lau (Shockwave) lit up the screen together in Infernal Affairs, but now, the two Hong Kong heavies will reunite in Emperor Motion Pictures’ The Goldfinger (aka Once Upon a Time in Hong Kong)
The film is directed by Felix Chong, who is perhaps best-known for writing the Infernal Affairs trilogy, and directing The Lost Bladesman (co-directed by Alan Mak) and Project Gutenberg.
Co-stars include Simon Yam (Cross), Philip Keung (Shock Wave 2), Alex Fong Chung-sun (Overheard 3), Charlene Choi (Kung Fu Dunk), Chin Ka-lok (Fighting Fist) and Carlos Chan (To the Fore).
Variety reports: Set in the 1980s, the film depicts cut-throat machinations between Hong Kong’s jostling business elites amidst the backdrop of the tail end of British colonial rule. It tells the story of the rise and bust of a fictional Hong Kong company called Jiali Group, following the travails of its chairman Cheng Yiyan through 15 years of investigations by the Independent Commission Against Corruption as murders are committed, billions in market value evaporate and millions are spent on litigation fees.
The Goldfinger opens domestically on December 30, 2023.
From local HK reports, supporting cast includes Simon Yam, Alex Fong, Charlene Choi, Philip Keung, Michael Ning, Catherine Chau and Carlos Chan. Yam, Lau and Leung alone is a stacked lineup.
My thoughts after having watched this a month ago:
Probably would have been better if this could somehow have been a TV series. There’s a shell of an interesting story but both and the characters aren’t really well developed within the two hour runtime to make it resonate. At least Tony Leung got to have fun though, I haven’t seen him act that unhinged for a long time.