Audio Format: DD 5.1, DD 2.0, DTS
Video Format: Widescreen 1.85:1 (Anamorphic)
Languages: Contonese, Mandarin
Subtitles: English, Chinese (T/S)
Region Code: ALL
Year Made: 2007
Running Time: 110
Release Date: 11/26/2007
Down-on-his-luck private eye Tam (Aaron Kwok) is asked by a man to find a woman who is trying to kill him. Tam takes the case but instead of locating the mysterious woman he starts turning up dead bodies. Welcome to the off-kilter world of The Detective, directed by Oxide Pang.
The Pang Brothers are quite prolific; in the last five years or so, they've made three other films together as a team, Oxide has directed four others on his own and Danny has made three solo efforts.
Reviewer Kozo of LoveHKFilm.com calls it "more of a ride than a complete experience, but Oxide Pang puts together a very enjoyable ride." Stefan Shih of movieXclusive.com had some reservations yet wrote: "still recommended for the visuals, sound design and [Aaron] Kwok's charismatic one man show." The film also received a positive nod from Cammy Zulkifli of Cinema Online in Malaysia.
Aaron Kwok has been a romantic pop idol for many years while also starring in movies in which his dramatic talents have sometimes been questioned. Entertaining blogger Soupdragon commented in her review: "He's an obsession just biding its time before it takes over all over again.
Tam is an impoverished private detective. One day, a guy nicknamed 'Fatty' asks Tam to track down a woman who had wanted to kill him. He leaves Tam a portrait of the woman without giving any details. Tam cannot resist the money and starts the investigation. He identifies the woman as Sum, a frequent mahjong player. Tam starts tracking her whereabouts through her mahjong playmates, but he is shocked to find each of them murdered every time he is about to get in touch with them. He discovers a half-burned photo at one of the murder scenes. Tam decides that he has to protect the next target of the invisible murderer. The photo is the only clue for Tam to uncover the case.
