The story has Andy Lau as a semi-retired Triad boss who has his right-hand man (Anthony Wong) take care of the dirty work. Along with his wife (Suki Kwan), Andy is quickly making himself into a legitimate buisnessman. However, the old life won't let him go. After Anthony is taken out in a gang battle, his son (Patrick Tam) goes out for revenge and plots to bankrupt Andy.

This is pretty standard HK crime stuff, but things are helped along by a tight script helmed by Wong Jing. The performances from the actors are also good. Of particular note are Andy Lau, who actually manages to convey some emotion, instead of coming off as a smary smart-ass as with so many of his roles, and Anthony Wong. Wong's work of late has been very uneven, but he always seems to try more in smaller roles like this, and he does fine here. Suki (aka "Shooky") Kwan also does a nice job; she is really believeable as Andy's tough (but not too tough) wife.

One part where Century of the Dragon does fall short in is the action. Some of the best parts of these kinds of movies is seeing grisly wounds inflicted by oversized choppers, and Century of the Dragon just doesn't have all the impact you would normally expect. Sure, there are a couple of spurts of blood, but come on, this is a Wong Jing movie! We want that stuff squirting out!

Anyway, if you're a fan of Triad movies or Andy Lau, you should check out Century of the Dragon. It's not the most original film and it does have its' share of problems. But for die-hard HK crime movie junkies, Century of the Dragon is a film well worth watching.

Note: Century of the Dragon has nothing to do with the Mickey Rourke film Year of the Dragon, which is a bit of a shock, given Wong Jing's past track record of using older movies as "inspiration".

With the main characters established in the first ten minutes, the film wastes no time in getting down to the main story. During a police operation Pao is shot and paralysed leaving a leadership vacuum. When Fai turns down the offer of returning to the helm Pao's own son steps forward and, convinced that his father was betrayed by an informant, sets out to punish those responsible. The instability within the organisation leads to much conflict which inevitable drags Fai to an explosive showdown.

This movie pays much attention to the plite of the undercover policemen who find themselves becoming detached from their colleagues and closer to the villains the are trying to stop. This leads to much guilt when the time comes to betray those who have trusted them. None of this is anything new, these themes were most memorably addressed in 'City of Fire', but it still manages to enthrall due mainly to the powerful and convincing performances.

Andy Lau is brilliant as Fai, turning suddenly from amiable family man to menacing gangster with ease. He may have retired but the 'cold as ice' look in his eyes betrays his history. Louis Koo is also worth watching as he struggles to juggle his life as a triad member and his commitments as a policeman. Unfortunately Anthony Wong doesnt get to do much as he spends most of the movie in a hospital bed.

Of course in Hong Kong Triad film you'd expect to see lots of action and this film is no exception. The battle sequences between the rival gangs are expertly handled to give a look of realism rather than stylish choreography. Most of the fights tend to be of the machette waving variety until the chaotic gunplay in the final reel.

While not being that original this film is still one of the most entertaining triad thrillers I've seen in a while. The last half hour particularly had me gripped.

Hong Kong matinee idol Andy Lau plays an aging mob boss gone straight who's pulled back into the business by police and rival gangs. One of his lieutenants (Louis Koo) is really an undercover cop, and the other one (Anthony Wong) has a son who's returned home from studying in Britain to learn the ways of the underworld. Director Clarence Fok (Naked Killer) expertly paces the action, building suspense as a series of provocations by the increasingly ruthless kid tests the men's loyalty toward one another. The chemistry between the charismatic Lau and the stoic Koo generates a moral and emotional force similar to the male bonding in John Woo's gangland sagas, and Fok exploits it for a gripping finale.

Despite Wong's unpredictable menace and Lau's handsome-devil charms, the movie belongs to Louis Koo, who plays the undercover cop sent to infiltrate Flying Dragon's home and organisation in order to bring him to justice. Tanned, tough and of poster-boy caliber, Koo possesses talent in abundance and he brings it to bear on his complex character. He is the silent, macho type and when he is caught between his friendship with Flying Dragon and his duty to uphold the law, he smolders with danger on screen. With Hong Kong cinema flooded with young, talented but inconsistent actors like Nicholas Tse and Stephen Fung, Koo is the man to watch. With little dialogue, he manages to convey the twisted loyalties eating away at his soul without becoming flamboyant about it. He has a quality which screen giants like Chow Yun Fat possess -- stoicism, and he uses it well.

While Century Of The Dragon is a pretty good piece of action that is replete with baseball-bat maimings, knifings, gunshots and even a fluorescent-tube sneak attack.