Election 2

2006 [CANTONESE]

Action / Crime / Drama / Thriller

9
IMDb Rating 7.4/10 10 7445 7.4K

gangster organized crime criminal triad

Plot summary

As election time nears, current Triad chairman Lok faces competition from his godsons. At the same time, Jimmy looks to increase his business relations with mainland China.

Director

Johnnie To Photo
Johnnie To

Top cast

Andy On Photo
Andy On as Lik
Louis Koo Photo
Louis Koo as Jimmy
Simon Yam Photo
Simon Yam as Lok
Siu-Fai Cheung Photo
Siu-Fai Cheung as Mr. So
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
852.62 MB
1280*534
Cantonese 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
24 fps
1 hr 32 min
Seeds 1
1.71 GB
1920*800
Cantonese 5.1
NR
Subtitles us  
24 fps
1 hr 32 min
Seeds 14

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by moimoichan6 7 / 10

Johnny To, the Godfather of Hong-Kong ?

It's always nice to fallow the evolution of some characters through the years from films to films. You have the impression to see old friends again after a long separation. But in the triad world of "Election 2", this friends are rather bad and dangerous, and the two years that separate this second opus from the first haven't really improve, nor their friendship, nor the situation. If the first "Election" already was a death fight in order to elect the boss of a important HK triad, this one, setting two years after, is more a complete blood bath, where the most barbarian acts are tolerated. The old triad traditions, that manage to contain the savagery of the characters in the first movie, don't belong to the modern world anymore, for the opening of the Chinese market to the Triads in 1997 completely changes its face.The characters who manage to survive to the first movie are now about to face a new election, which opposes this time Lok, who wants to be reelected and the young Jimmy, who's quite reluctant to become the new boos, but has to win the election, in order to become a traditional business man in two years. In this second movie, the characters have much more elaborated than in the first one, for they're acting in a tragedy play, with much more powerful actors than them. Lok isn't the calm and self-control man he once was, he's now obsessed with power and greed. And Jimmy is the classical tragic Corleone character of a gangster movie, who wants to go straight, but only goes deeper and deeper in the evil world of the Triad.As well as the characters, the political aspect of the movie is also well develops. If the first film mostly deals with ancestral Trial rituals, the second one brings a contemporary point of view on this, and lights the links between HK Triads and Chinese government, which really control them since 1997. This movie is also more violent than the first, guns appear (whereas they were inexistent in "Election 1"), and a magisterially gore torture scene (with dog and human food...) greatly increase the emotional impact of the movie and underlines the abominations man is able to do in order to archive his need of power.All this elements makes "Election 2" a entertaining and interesting movie, and elects Jhonny To as one of the most interesting filmmaker of Hong-Kong. But his very classical direction (the movie always looks like a classical 90's HK polar), and storyline (the story of Jimmy is very similar to the Michael Corleone one, with some Melvillle elements, and a soundtrack very similar to the one you can find in Corean Thrillers) makes him a lot less original, than directors like Wong Kar-Wai or Hark Tsui, who is always the godfather of HK cinema.
Reviewed by jadavix 8 / 10

Superior to "Election" in every way

The first "Election" film seems to be Johnnie To's most highly praised movie, which is strange, because I think this less-seen sequel is superior in every way. It has a plot you can actually understand, and a persistent style and tone."Election" had key moments apparently happening off camera so you could only deduce what was going on in the plot with super-human concentration. Not so in the sequel. You get the gist pretty easily, and pretty early on: Lok, the elected chairman from the first movie, is approaching the end of his tenure, but is considering breaking Triad tradition and extending his term. Meanwhile Jimmy is trying to set himself up as a legitimate businessman in China and move away from the Triad. He finds that government officials will only work with him if he takes the chair in his Triad.So the stage is set for crosses, double-crosses and dealings with Triad "uncles" and cold-blooded subordinates."Triad Election", also known as "Election 2", is never less than engrossing and captivating. It's one of the best Triad films I've seen.
Read more IMDb reviews

1 Comments

Be the first to leave a comment