Exiled

Good luck trying to make any kind of sense out of "Exiled," a largely incoherent Chinese mob drama that at least boasts exquisite photography by Cheng Siu-Keung and uber-stylish direction by Johnnie To to hook and enthrall us. In fact, so riveting are the movie's visuals that you won't even mind that you can't tell who's who without a program or figure out how any of the characters are related to one another in the context of the narrative. It all has something to do with a gang of assassins trying to protect one of their own from the very mob boss who has sent them on a mission to take the man out - but I'll be damned if I can explain anything more that happens in the movie.

Suffice it to say that with its meticulously composed, wide screen framing, its stylized action scenes - kind of a cross between Quentin Tarentino and Robert Rodriguez - its visual correlatives, and its dark, velvety colors, the movie makes it hard for us to tear our eyes off the screen for a single second.

Almost a textbook case of style triumphing over substance, "Exiled" is a true cineaste's delight. And hang the story.