Double Vision (2002)

An FBI Agent pairs with a troubled Taiwan cop to hunt for a serial killer who's embedding a mysterious fungus in the brains of victims.

Director:

Kuo-Fu Chen

Writers:

Kuo-Fu Chen, Richard Epcar (dubbed version)

Stars:

Tony Ka Fai Leung, David Morse, Rene Liu

2 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Tony Ka Fai Leung	...	Huang Huo-tu
David Morse	...	Kevin Richter
Rene Liu	...	Ching-fang
Leon Dai	...	Li Feng-bo
Kuei-Mei Yang	...	Coroner
Sihung Lung	...	Taoist Expert
Brett Climo	...	Serial Killer
Wei-Han Huang	...	Mei-Mei
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Han Chang	...	Detective Chang
Akio Chen
Hui-Hui Chiang
King Chin
Heng-Yin Chou	...	Reporter
De-Hai Chu
Judy Ya-Hsin Ko	...	Xiao Ya, betelnut girl

Storyline

An FBI Agent pairs with a troubled Taiwan cop to hunt for a serial killer who's embedding a mysterious fungus in the brains of victims.

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Plot Keywords:

taiwan | serial killer | fbi | two word title | throat slitting | 

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Taglines:

There Is Only What You Believe.

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Genres:

Fantasy | Horror | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence/gore

Details

Country:

Taiwan Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin Hokkien English

Release Date:

25 October 2002 (Taiwan)

Also Known As:

Double Vision

Filming Locations:

Australia

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$244,178 (Hong Kong), 6 December 2002, Limited Release

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia, Nan Fang Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min 110 min (R-rated)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Broke the record for the largest production budget of any Taiwanese movie.

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Connections

Featured in The Making of 'Double Vision' (2002)

User Reviews

Creepy, atmospheric, spellbinding and original.

I didn't really know what to expect from this. I got more than I could ever have imagined.

It's an atmospheric tale, which is part mystery, part horror. Not horror in gory or bloody, but as in disturbing and just creepy.

There are really two story arcs which increasingly intertwine, the mystery killings and the personal life of Tony Leung's character, who made the mistake of being an honest cop and has ended up with nothing but trouble for it, having family trouble and being transferred to the foreign division, basically exiled from the regular police.

Two seemingly inexplicable and possibly supernatural killings take place, then a third involves a foreigner. This is where Leung really enters the case, when an FBI Profiler (David Morse) is brought in to help, and as a foreign division officer, Leung liaisons with him.

The two slowly unravel the mystery of the killings and slowly bond, in part because both are outsiders to the the rest of the police. Morse a foreigner, and Leung, exiled for his past deeds and his own troubled past.

I really can't get into the plot without giving spoilers, but it is largely based on Taoism, which at least for western audiences is pretty fresh. Some may make a comparison to the movie Seven, but I really don't think that's fair, as only 1 killing in this is really ritualistic. I really can't think of anything like this movie, I really found myself glued to the set, intrigued by the mystery and not knowing what was coming next.

Leung amazed me in Infernal Affairs, and he does just as good a job here. I've always thought Morse was an underrated actor (since he mostly is a character actor), and indeed with a lead role he turns in a great performance. The rest of the cast also turns in great performances, though those two are the only ones I recognize.

My only real complaint is the the ending, or parts just before the ending, are a bit confusing and somewhat muddled. But I suspect that was the point.

The movie really looks great. The cinematography does a great job of capturing the mood and the sound is also quite fitting. All around a really classy movie.