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

First Half = Interesting; Second Half = Absurd

The film centers on a police detective investigating a series of gruesome murderers. As the case pulls him deeper, he soon realizes that he may be a prime suspect.

MURDERER is an example of a film that tries too hard to be unique and different from every other film with a similar plot. In fact, it tries too hard that the film falls apart. Let's start with the good: The first half of the film is interesting and captivating. The film lays out the puzzle pieces while our protagonist tries to put them together.

Then comes in the dreaded second half. Whatever good was built up in the first half is now broken down, stomped upon, and lit on fire. Stupid and unbelievable things happen here. For example, our protagonist seems to be framed for some murders. Well, the easiest way to find out is some DNA testing, right? Nope. Somehow, nobody in this film ever thought of that. It's as if the film took place 50 years ago when there was no technology or DNA testing.

There's also a twist that occurs that is so outlandish and utterly hilarious that you'd question how any of the actors held a straight face in the scenes they're in. At one point in the film, our protagonist says, "This is ridiculous! This is crazy!" He isn't the only person that is thinking that at that moment.

However, I will say the film isn't completely terrible. The performance by Aaron Kwok is really good. Also, the film is really well made, from the cinematography to the score. However, one would think someone would have cared to fix the problems in the script. What starts off as a good detective mystery soon transcends into absurdness and soon into hilarity. The film is a prime example of how a perfectly good film can fall apart by a messy script.