Here is my review of the original:
Infernal Affairs is:

• A Hong Kong action movie without Hong Kong action.
• A subtitled, multi-layered story of honor and betrayal starring the biggest Cantonese pop-star alive.
• Being remade by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon.
• Well-worth seeing.

Synopsis: A cop is undercover in a mob, and a mob member is undercover in the police department. The corrupt cop is also assigned to investigate the mole within his department, and instead focuses his energy on finding the cop within the mob. Solid choreography, effective use of music and appealling actors only complement the excellent script. Does it need to be remade?

Now, to a review of the remake: much of the above still applies, except the bit about the pop-star.

• Some Scorsese violence that is quite unexpected (when and how it happens, not that violence is unexpected…).
• Mark Mark in an supporting role (and his hair should have asked for credits as well).
• Alec Baldwin hamming it up, teetering on the line of too much for a serious film (and as good as he was, one thought ran through my head—I would’ve liked a riskier choice, perhaps one of my faves, Randy Quaid, in his role).
• Nicholson being Nicholson.
• Some quality Rolling Stones music selections, and a very odd Pink Floyd cover that just didn’t work.

Good stuff, folks should still check out the original, but this is one worth seeing.

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