Protégé (film)
Encyclopedia
Protégé is a 2007
Singaporean
-Hong Kong co-produced crime drama film written and directed by Derek Yee
, starring Andy Lau
, Daniel Wu
, Louis Koo
, Anita Yuen
and Zhang Jingchu
.
officer Nick had spent the last seven years penetrating into the core of a drug ring working his way up from a street dealer post to the managerial position handling cargo deliveries for Kwan - the biggest player in the local heroin market. When the ailing Kwan makes Nick his protégé, Nick could not but sway before money and power and starts to perform his role like a real drug trafficker. This, together with his affair with heroin-addict Jane, causes Nick to becomes more and more confused about his true identity, and eventually leads to a disastrous end.
The film begins with a scene in a dark isolated rundown apartment building, showing a heroin addict living poorly with her young daughter. The scene then forwards to the perspective of Officer Nick who is suffering from loneliness just after completing an undercover assignment. He recalls the entire story as to what happened and the events to lead to his emptiness.
magazine, 'The movie is powerful precisely because it doesn't preach, and therefore spares us all the usual opinions, standard platitudes and naive assumptions about drug dealing and addiction.'
On February 24, 2009 Dragon Dynasty
, released "Protégé" on Region 1 DVD:
Special Features:
Hong Kong films of 2007
A list of films produced in Hong Kong in 2007:.-2007:-External links:* * Hong Kong films of 2007 at...
Singaporean
Cinema of Singapore
Despite having a flourishing Chinese and Malay film industry in the 1950s and 1960s, Singapore's film industry declined after independence in 1965. There were a few films that featured Singaporean actors and were set in Singapore, including Saint Jack and They Call Her Cleopatra Wong...
-Hong Kong co-produced crime drama film written and directed by Derek Yee
Derek Yee
Derek Yee Tung-sing , born in 1957, is a former Shaw Brothers actor from Hong Kong, currently a film director and screenwriter, who has achieved fame and respect in Hong Kong and international film festival circuits for treading carefully commercial viability concerns with artistic integrity...
, starring Andy Lau
Andy Lau
Andy Lau MH, JP is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer, actor, and film producer. Lau has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maintaining a successful singing career at the same time...
, Daniel Wu
Daniel Wu
Daniel Yin-Cho Wu is a Hong Kong actor, director and producer. Since his film debut in 1998, he has been featured in over 40 films. Wu has been called "the young Andy Lau," and is known as a "flexible and distinctive" leading actor in the Chinese-language film industry.-Early life:Wu was born in...
, Louis Koo
Louis Koo
Louis Koo is a Hong Kong actor. He was once a notable local television series actor, winning TVB's Best Actor award in 1999 for Detective Investigation Files IV. In recent years, he has focused on film...
, Anita Yuen
Anita Yuen
Anita Yuen Wing-yi is a Hong Kong film and television actress. She was the winner of the 1990 Miss Hong Kong Pageant.-Pageant career:At the age of 18, Yuen entered the Miss Hong Kong 1990 pageant. She was a heavy favorite to win the crown from the semifinal to final. During the semifinals on August...
and Zhang Jingchu
Zhang Jingchu
Zhang Jingchu is a Chinese film actress. She graduated in Directing at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing.Zhang was brought up in a middle-working class family in the countryside...
.
Plot
UndercoverMole (espionage)
A mole is a spy who works for an enemy nation, but whose loyalty ostensibly lies with his own nation's government. In some usage, a mole differs from a defector in that a mole is a spy before gaining access to classified information, while a defector becomes a spy only after gaining access...
officer Nick had spent the last seven years penetrating into the core of a drug ring working his way up from a street dealer post to the managerial position handling cargo deliveries for Kwan - the biggest player in the local heroin market. When the ailing Kwan makes Nick his protégé, Nick could not but sway before money and power and starts to perform his role like a real drug trafficker. This, together with his affair with heroin-addict Jane, causes Nick to becomes more and more confused about his true identity, and eventually leads to a disastrous end.
The film begins with a scene in a dark isolated rundown apartment building, showing a heroin addict living poorly with her young daughter. The scene then forwards to the perspective of Officer Nick who is suffering from loneliness just after completing an undercover assignment. He recalls the entire story as to what happened and the events to lead to his emptiness.
Premise
Based on materials provided by retired undercover agents of the police force, "Protégé" attempts to realistically tell the story of undercover agents in the clandestine drug world, who struggle to constantly walk on the fine line between justice and crime, but who will never see the day of serving in the regular police force.Critical reception
The film received generally positive reviews. Perry Lam, for example, wrote in MuseMuse (Hong Kong Magazine)
Muse is a bilingual Hong Kong-based multimedia publisher specializing in content related to Hong Kong's art and culture scene.. Until December 2010, Muse published an award-winning monthly arts and culture magazine...
magazine, 'The movie is powerful precisely because it doesn't preach, and therefore spares us all the usual opinions, standard platitudes and naive assumptions about drug dealing and addiction.'
Cast
- Andy LauAndy LauAndy Lau MH, JP is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer, actor, and film producer. Lau has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maintaining a successful singing career at the same time...
as Lam Kwan - Anita YuenAnita YuenAnita Yuen Wing-yi is a Hong Kong film and television actress. She was the winner of the 1990 Miss Hong Kong Pageant.-Pageant career:At the age of 18, Yuen entered the Miss Hong Kong 1990 pageant. She was a heavy favorite to win the crown from the semifinal to final. During the semifinals on August...
as Kwan's wife - Daniel WuDaniel WuDaniel Yin-Cho Wu is a Hong Kong actor, director and producer. Since his film debut in 1998, he has been featured in over 40 films. Wu has been called "the young Andy Lau," and is known as a "flexible and distinctive" leading actor in the Chinese-language film industry.-Early life:Wu was born in...
as Nick (Lee Chi-Lik) - Zhang JingchuZhang JingchuZhang Jingchu is a Chinese film actress. She graduated in Directing at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing.Zhang was brought up in a middle-working class family in the countryside...
as Jane (Pang Yuk-Fun) - Louis KooLouis KooLouis Koo is a Hong Kong actor. He was once a notable local television series actor, winning TVB's Best Actor award in 1999 for Detective Investigation Files IV. In recent years, he has focused on film...
as Jane's husband - He Meitian as Kwan's sister-in-law
- Qi YuwuQi YuwuQi Yuwu is a China-born Singapore film and television actor. Qi is a permanent resident of Singapore and a contracted artiste under Singapore's MediaCorp Studios.-Biography:...
as Singapore customs officer (cameo) - Derek YeeDerek YeeDerek Yee Tung-sing , born in 1957, is a former Shaw Brothers actor from Hong Kong, currently a film director and screenwriter, who has achieved fame and respect in Hong Kong and international film festival circuits for treading carefully commercial viability concerns with artistic integrity...
as Miu Chi-Wah - Liu Kai-Chi as HKCED Customs Chief
DVD release
Region 1 DVD (US & CANADA)On February 24, 2009 Dragon Dynasty
Dragon Dynasty
Dragon Dynasty is a joint venture started by The Weinstein Company and Genius Products. The company was created on May 23, 2006 for the sole purpose of distributing East Asian films on DVD in the US, whose licenses are held by, or will be acquired by The Weinstein Company...
, released "Protégé" on Region 1 DVD:
Special Features:
- Feature Length Audio Commentary with Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey LoganBey LoganBey Logan is a respected expert on East Asian cinema, particularly Hong Kong action cinema. He is also notable as a screenwriter, film producer and as a martial artist who has had roles in a number of films, including the 2003 Dante Lam film The Twins Effect.He has written two books - Hong Kong...
- The Making of Protégé Undercover & Over the Edge: An Exclusive Interview with Leading Man Daniel WuDaniel WuDaniel Yin-Cho Wu is a Hong Kong actor, director and producer. Since his film debut in 1998, he has been featured in over 40 films. Wu has been called "the young Andy Lau," and is known as a "flexible and distinctive" leading actor in the Chinese-language film industry.-Early life:Wu was born in...
- Chasing the Dragon: An Exclusive Interview with Leading Lady Zhang JingchuZhang JingchuZhang Jingchu is a Chinese film actress. She graduated in Directing at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing.Zhang was brought up in a middle-working class family in the countryside...
- The Dealer: An Exclusive Interview with Producer Peter ChanPeter ChanPeter Chan Ho-sun , is a film director and producer.-Life and career:Chan was born in Bangkok to Chinese parents. He spent his teens in and studied in Hong Kong and United States, and he attended film school at UCLA. He returned to Hong Kong in 1983 for a summer internship in the film industry....
- Original Theatrical Trailer
Awards and nominations
- 27th Hong Kong Film Awards27th Hong Kong Film AwardsCeremony for the 27th Hong Kong Film Awards was held on 14 April 2008 in the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and hosted by Sandra Ng, Carol Cheng and Sammi Cheng. Winners in nineteen categories were unveiled, with film The Warlords being the year's biggest winner.The nominees were announced on 2 February...
- Won: Best Supporting Actor (Andy LauAndy LauAndy Lau MH, JP is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer, actor, and film producer. Lau has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maintaining a successful singing career at the same time...
) - Won: Best Film Editing (Eric Kong)
- Nominated: Best Film
- Nominated: Best Director (Derek YeeDerek YeeDerek Yee Tung-sing , born in 1957, is a former Shaw Brothers actor from Hong Kong, currently a film director and screenwriter, who has achieved fame and respect in Hong Kong and international film festival circuits for treading carefully commercial viability concerns with artistic integrity...
) - Nominated: Best Screenplay (Xu Lan, Chun Tin-Nam, Aubrey Lam)
- Nominated: Best Actress (Zhang JingchuZhang JingchuZhang Jingchu is a Chinese film actress. She graduated in Directing at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing.Zhang was brought up in a middle-working class family in the countryside...
) - Nominated: Best Supporting Actor (Louis KooLouis KooLouis Koo is a Hong Kong actor. He was once a notable local television series actor, winning TVB's Best Actor award in 1999 for Detective Investigation Files IV. In recent years, he has focused on film...
) - Nominated: Best Supporting Actress (Anita YuenAnita YuenAnita Yuen Wing-yi is a Hong Kong film and television actress. She was the winner of the 1990 Miss Hong Kong Pageant.-Pageant career:At the age of 18, Yuen entered the Miss Hong Kong 1990 pageant. She was a heavy favorite to win the crown from the semifinal to final. During the semifinals on August...
) - Nominated: Best New Performer (Tse Chi Tung)
- Nominated: Best Cinematography (Venus Keung)
- Nominated: Best Art Direction (Yee Chung-ManYee Chung-ManKenneth Yee Chung-Man is a Chinese production designer, art director, costume designer and film director. He was awarded Best Costume and Make Up Design for Curse of the Golden Flower at the 26th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2007....
, Kenneth Mak) - Nominated: Best Action Choreography (Chin Kar-lok)
- Nominated: Best Original Film Score (Peter KamPeter KamPeter Kam Pui-Tat is a music composer for Hong Kong films including The Warlords and Bodyguards and Assassins.Peter is a four-time winner at the Hong Kong Film Awards.-External links:...
) - Nominated: Best Sound Design (Kinson Tsang)
- Nominated: Best Visual Effects (Ho Siu Lun, Chow Kim Hung, Ching Han Wong )
- Won: Best Supporting Actor (Andy Lau