Tag: Johnny To

The Mission (1999), Dir. Johnny To

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Ok, so those who know me will not be suprised that the first film in the Liang Shan Lounge is Johnny To’s The Mission.  As with most films that will wind up here, I like the film…..ok, I love the film.  I love it because it is not like other triad films.  Sure, you have hitmen hired to do a job for a gangster, some gunplay, and somebody who messes it up for everyone else.  But the film is very…..quiet.  It’s great because it assumes you’ve seen so many triad films, and it’s going to show you something different, or at least not show you what you are expecting.

I showed this film to my class, and after seeing A Better Tomorrow and Infernal Affairs, I guess they were expecting something super-spectacular.  About 20 minutes into the film, I thought they were going to riot.  You see, I told them that The Mission is probably one of my favorite Hong Kong films ever.  As I watched it with them, for a moment I wondered if I had unduly persuaded myself that this was one of my favorite films ever.  Then it happened.  That scene were Anthony Wong pays a visit to a low-life whose bothering Francis Ng so much he can’t do his bodyguarding duties correctly.  THAT is when I was like, oh yeah, this is why I like the film.  You just don’t see it coming, and if you blink, you might miss it when it happens.  Then my class understood why I liked the film so much.  Yeah, I need a hairdresser like Wong.

The Mission probably initiated my love affair with To films; I like his aesthetic.  I don’t know what Simon Yam and Suet Lam have on him, because they’ve been in practically every To film I’ve seen, but that’s ok.  I love the Mission, right down to its cheesy theme music!

Ladies………

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You know, I’m tired of the people who market Asian films to solely to men.  They act like only men, especially men in the golden demographic of 18-35, matter.  I got news, people…….women watch Asian film.  And not just the fluffy romantic comedies or coming-of age, angst-ridden teen dramas.  I’m talking serious triad and revenge-laden fare.  The recommendation for me to watch Chan-Wook Park’s Oldboy came from a Korean-American woman.  So what’s up with that?  Why do women like the genres of Asian film distributors and critics alike claim as the purview of men?

Well, I can’t speak for all the ladies, but I can tell you why I love films like Johnny To’s The Mission (See the Liang Shan Lounge this month), John Woo’s heartbreaking Bullet in the Head, and the Young and Dangerous series.  I like the idea of brotherhood, that is, I get it.  It’s not just for men.  The idea that you have someone, or a group of people, who have your back.  However, in most posse dynamics, there is always somebody who has to muck it up.  What do you do?  Well, you could whack them, or the sense of loyalty could be so strong that you are willing to overlook such, um, indiscretions.  I like that tension that occurs when loyalty is one the line.  Who do you trust?  And who are you going to have to take out?  Decisions, decisions.

Of course, there are women who just like to see people get messed up in the worst way.  Me, I’m trying to cut down on the superkinetic violence found in films directed by the likes of Takashi Miike.  But women are watching them.  Be afraid, be very afraid.