“Integrity” Chinese Theatrical Poster
Director: Alan Mak
Writer: Alan Mak
Cast: Lau Ching-Wan, Nick Cheung Ka-fai, Karena Lam, Anita Yuen, Alex Fong, Deep Ng
Running Time: 114 min.
By Martin Sandison
Alan Mak’s Extraordinary Mission really slipped under the radar a couple of years ago; for me it was one of the best action films of 2017, with the ending reaching insane heights of over-the-top action. Unfortunately, the film under-performed in all territories, and Mak’s new film Integrity is a complete left turn. An anomalous Hong Kong thriller, Integrity features no action and concentrates on a complex plot and star turns from Lau Ching-Wan (Call of Heroes) and Nick Cheung (The Trough). While the film should be applauded for this approach, the end result falls flat, despite there being some aspects to enjoy.
King (Lau) is a member the ICAC (The Independent Commission Against Corruption) and is investigating a case involving cigarette manufacturing, which Jack Hui (Cheung) is involved in as a witness. Multiple characters and plot lines pile up as the case becomes much more complex than King realised, with little respite for his perpetually gurning mug.
As an advert for the ICAC, the film certainly pushes all the right buttons to please the Mainland Chinese Government. Ten years ago, shlock-meister Wong Jing made I Corrupt All Cops, a seeming history of the ICAC. Having not seen the film I can’t pass much comment, but by one account it pleased the Chinese Government, while also serving up lashings of Hong Kong film-style violence and corrupt cops. Oh, how times have changed. In Integrity, all of the members of the ICAC are seen as clean-cut, obedient, government-serving folk who will do anything to solve the case with the minimum of violence. Perhaps this is one reason why there is such a dearth of action in the film. The only car chase is over before it begins – not a punch is thrown or a clip emptied. Certainly a bold approach, and those who like to use their brains to work out mounting plot strands and complex plotting will have a field day. Until the ending.
The ending is very weak, and despite tidying up the plot, is a complete anti-climax. While I like a tangled-web plot as much as the next person, there was little to hold my interest here. I guess it’s because I love aesthetics in movies, and when there is a combination of style and substance we get classics like Mak’s co-directed masterpiece Infernal Affairs. The style of Integrity is beyond bland. Without Lau and Cheung, the screen would go dead for the majority of the running time. Most of the film is taken up by people talking in rooms, with little dramatic emphasis or visual interest. At times the over-egged soundtrack, which attempted to punctuate scenes with drama, was laughable; as they were about as dramatic as watching an egg boil.
While these aspects bug the sh*t out of me because of Mak’s track record, it’s great to see Lau and Cheung cut loose with their performances, as both get to play characters with some depth. It’s interesting to observe how they develop throughout, with Lau realising by the end he can’t take on the world and must accept his place. Cheung’s character is intriguingly two-faced, who at first seems as if he wants to help the cops and is a decent man, by the end is a different beast all together.
One of the highlights of the film is a pair of flashbacks showing Lau and Cheung in college. Yes, they are computer enhanced to de-age them. And… it’s actually surprisingly decent. It looks as if the Chinese have finally realised they were far behind Hollywood in effects, and if advance word of The Wandering Earth is anything to go by, they have learned this lesson.
The less said about peripheral characters and the actors performances in Integrity the better. Especially Karena Lam (Dragon Blade), whose flatness in her role as King’s wife and colleague would make a flat-earther blush. Only the perennially great Alex Fong (Drink, Drank, Drunk, one of my favourite movie titles of all time) comes away with anything approaching credence in a token part as King’s colleague.
While not a complete turd, Integrity doesn’t do enough to hold the viewers attention, and serves as a blip in Lau’s otherwise mostly wonderful filmography. The mullet he sported in Police Story 2 gives Van Damme a run for his money, as an afterthought. Those who like their movies cerebral will find something to enjoy; those who love their Hong Kong movies of the Golden Age will again have their head in their hands. The remedy: search out a classic, in that seemingly neverending supply, and avoid new HK cinema, unless the films are getting uniformly good reviews. It’s interesting to note that the best Hong Kong cinema by new voices recently takes the form of low key drama, especially my favourite Mad World. And it’s lucky I like that genre, or my misery would be complete.
Martin Sandison’s Rating: 5/10
Yep, this sounds like the stereotypical modern HK flick that annoys everyone else. Government ass kissing, clean cut protagonists, no character flaws, a lead who gives up on his optimism, and no R or PG-13 content.
It seems like more of an ICAC recruitment film than the stupid-ass Letter Storm series. With that said, movies like this seem to make people more forgiving of certain older HK films simply because they’re more “ballsy” and not because they’re really good. It seems we’re all focused on the extremes lately.
Entertaining review Martin (re-read it twice trying to find out which film festival you saw it at :-P). This sounds like a dud, although I’m as relieved as the next person to see Lau Ching-Wan return to thriller territory, after his almost unwatchable attempts at the action genre (‘Call of Heroes’, ‘The White Storm’).
I agree with Andrew that movies like this actually result in a more forgiving attitude to some HK flicks of old, that perhaps once you’d happily skip over. When a commodity becomes in short supply, you appreciate even the lesser quality versions of it, just because you know it’s so hard to come by.
It’s funny how that works. We discard trash, but when we have too much sanitization, we want the trashiness back.
Lau Ching-Wan has been doing thrillers in between his action outings which unfortunately includes Heartfall Arises. (Reviews aren’t kind to say the least) Even though his last action flicks sucked, I hope he does a good one. (Maybe Dante Lam has a role for him in his next Operation film.)