Murderer (2009)
"Saat yan faan" (original title)

A Hong Kong-set mystery centered on a detective who has been framed for a series of gruesome murders.

Director:

Chow Hin Yeung Roy

Writers:

Chow Hin Yeung Roy (screenplay), Chi-long To (screenplay)

Stars:

Aaron Kwok, Chun-Ning Chang, Siu-Fai Cheung

2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Aaron Kwok	...	Ling
Chun-Ning Chang	...	Hazel (as Ning Chang)
Siu-Fai Cheung	...	Ghost
Kuan Tai Chen	...	Tai
Kar Lok Chin	...	Andy
You-Nam Wong	...	Leo
Josie Ho	...	Minnie
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Kwok-Wai Cheung	...	Identification Bureau Officer
Buzz Chung	...	Young Ken Cheung
Yong Dong	...	Chief Superintendent Yu
Man Ki Kwok	...	Young Mang
Teddy Lin	...	Ling's father
Kim-Wah Liu
Wai-Ming Pang
Jan-yut Tam	...	Zai Zai / Sonny

Storyline

A Hong Kong-set mystery centered on a detective who has been framed for a series of gruesome murders.

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Plot Keywords:

dead woman | police officer knocked unconscious | police interrogation | police officer | police officer killed | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

Hong Kong USA

Language:

Cantonese English

Release Date:

9 July 2009 (Hong Kong)

Also Known As:

Murderer

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Company Credits

Production Co:

EDKO Film, Eastern Productions, Focus Features

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

Tries a bit hard, crams a little too much

Saat yan faan is interesting if only because it crams an awful lot of concepts that have appeared in some very effective thrillers. Its greatest fault is that those various elements do not always gel.

The story revolves around Ling, a detective who seemingly suffers from amnesia. What's worse, there is a serial killer on the loose and clues start to point towards Ling as a suspect. Is Ling somehow responsible for what is going on? Does he really suffer from amnesia or not? How is he involved exactly? The movie goes through several twists and turns, some of which are rather cool and unpredictable.

Director Chow Hin Yeung Roy goes for a feel that is reminiscent of occidental hits such as Se7en. Right from the film title, you gets loads of quick edits, sound effects and the like. Several film locations are rather interesting and it does feel like a big budget Asian movie. Unfortunately, as is par for the course in Asian thrillers, the acting is absolutely awful. Cheesy and over-dramatic doesn't even begin to describe the performances. The script is also terrible and seems to try hard to go for a Hollywood tone and fails. The whole movie would flow much better if it stayed true to its cultural roots.

As the story unfolds and we get hold of what is really going on, the acting and dialog is too weak to allow us to suspend disbelief.

We're still left with several cool ideas which might benefit from a remake of some kind, since this movie was so desperate to adopt a Hollywood feel.