The Corruptor (1999)

I am not a fan of films that are as explicit or as violent as The Corruptor is, as a general rule, but I bought The Corruptor because of Chow Yun-Fat's splendid performance as Nick Chen. I really like Nick Chen, despite, or perhaps because of his flaws. Beneath his cynical attitude toward the inevitability of corruption in ANY police department and in particular the Asian Crime Unit of New York, is an honest man.

The way he tries to protect the prostitute he loves is touching and beautiful, especially the scene where he feeds her while she is in bed. Nick's motivations and his own entanglement in the shadow-world of human exploitation is always colored by a desire to correct the wrong and make things right. He takes pride in his being a policeman like his father was before him, and wants to be thought of as a "good cop", which he really is.

The famous "plum" scene is a gem. Yun-Fat and his partner, Walberg (who is MUCH better in this role than I expected him to be), are strolling through the open market district of China Town and Yun-Fat stops to purchase a plum and offers one to Walberg. Walberg rejects the plum in favor of a peach. The way Yun-Fat talks about Frank Sinatra and his reference to his "godfather" who "made me look good, and I LIKE it!" is sad and joyful at the same time. Beautiful scene.

Others have covered the action in this film, so I won't go over the same ground. The London-based Chinese actor who plays the role of the king-pin of the operation is outstanding. He brings to the screen true deceit without apology.

For me, the BEST part of the DVD is the director's commentary. He explains the scenes and how they were accomplished. There is also a documentary on How the film was made with Chow Yun-Fat and Mark Walberg talking about their roles. This is fascinating.

Because I like Nick Chen so much, the end of the film is tough for me to watch but it contains some of the best scenes in the film, for example: Nick in the men's room doing a Chinese breathing exercise to prepare himself for what he must do next.

Not for the faint-of-heart or those who cannot look at evil without flinching. If you can force yourself to look, The Corruptor is well worth the effort.

Fmovies: Fans of Chow Yun Fat can finally exhale; he has made a decent Hollywood movie at last.

I went to see "The Corruptor" this past Saturday in HK. While it's not an especially good film, it's a solid piece of entertainment. Most importantly, it allows Chow Yun Fat to be Chow Yun Fat. Whereas he was stiff and tentative in "The Replacement Killers", in "The Corruptor" Chow burns up the screen. From the very first few seconds of his appearance in the movie you can see that "The Coolest Actor in the World" is back in form.

In fact, it's the acting that saves the movie. The story is a tired one, but Mark Wahlberg and especially Chow are charismatic and make their characters sympathetic. Chow also develops an onscreen chemistry w/ Wahlberg that was completely absent in his partnership w/ Mira Sorvino.

Because of it's uninspiring storyline, however, "The Corruptor" will probably still not make Chow a household name in America. But it will win him lots of new fans. Let's hope this upward trend in Chow's career continues w/ "Anna and the King".

While not perfect, The Corrupter is far from lacking when it comes to delivering the action goods we've come to expect from a Chow Yun Fat movie. People who say it needs more action or character development must have watched the wrong movie. To add more of either would have had to resulted in a longer movie. From start to finish, no time is wasted in conveying the story or showing Hong Kong style gunplay that is above and beyond what American audiences are used to. Extremely violent and full of imaginative ways to kill people with a gun, I don't see how anyone who would even consider watching this would give it a low rating. Unlike today's action flicks who strive for their precious PG-13 rating, this movie takes it over the top and is full of gratuitous nudity, immoral activity, and point-blank head-exploding gunfire. If you're into any of the aforementioned goodness, then you more than likely won't be disappointed by this flick. The famous car chase scene is perhaps the most violent ever put to celluloid. Mark Wahlberg isn't the greatest actor but is believable nonetheless. Chow Yun Fat plays the role of desensitized Asian gang taskforce detective Nick Chen perfectly. This isn't a movie to watch with the kids as Chen's antics can sometimes leave one questioning his sanity. With a touching ending and adrenaline pumping action, The Corrupter delivers on all promises - so much so that I must wonder if some of the other reviewers here were even watching the same movie. 9/10

The Corruptor fmovies. They say everyone has a secret. The Corruptor is a prime example of this saying because everyone in Chinatown is hiding something in this movie. Detective Nick Chen, played by international star Chow Yun-Fat, heads the Asian Crime Unit in his precinct. Chen is a decorated hero with many years on the force. He is also in the back pocket of Uncle Benny, the leader of the old-line gang in the city. Because of this he is fighting even harder to take down the Fukienese Dragons, a gang of young Chinese recently arrived to America. Adding to his problems Chen has a new cop in his unit, Mark Wahlberg plays Danny Wallace. Wallace is a rookie with his own secrets including a father who owes the Italian mob a large sum of money. The Corruptor is fun! Any movie that starts off with an entire storefront exploding and the one `survivor' being gunned down as he comes out the door is bound to grab your attention. Many gunfights and chase scenes later you even realize there is a story here. Mark Wahlberg continues to improve as an actor though it is hard to think of him as anything other than `Marky Mark.' Chow Yun-Fat is the main reason to see this movie. He was a star in China for many years before we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of him. His English has improved immensely from his first American movie, The Replacement Killers, and his charisma is at the level that it always has been. When Chow is on the screen it is hard to watch others and it will definitely be interesting to see him in the remake of The King and I with Jodie Foster. James Foley directed this movie. It's not for everyone but if movies like Hard-Boiled and The Killer entertained you then check out The Corruptor. It's worth it!

The Corrupter is an amazing crime thriller that combines intense action and shocking twist that will have your jaw on the floor. The Corrupter stars Mark Wahlberg as Danny Wallace a rookie cop who works in the Asian Gang Unit, he works under and with Detective Lieutenant Nicholas Chen the head of the A.G.U. Wallace first case with Chen is to solve a bunch of brutal murders that are happening all over Chinatown, but as Wallace get's deeper and deeper into the case Wallace finds out something that bust the whole thing wide open. The Corrupter is one of those rare crime thrillers it keeps you guessing and thinking right up to the jaw dropping climax that will leave you breathe less. I highly recommended this amazing crime film. I hope my review helps~ C.R. Lopez.

The Corruptor is Chow Yun-Fat`s second American film. This is more like an explosive thriller, rather than his usual non-stop action-films. There is a handful of actionscenes and a cool car chase, though. Chow Yun-Fat is Nick Chen, a cop in Chinatown, who is corrupt as you may have guessed. Mark Wahlberg is Danny Wallace, a white cop, who is transferred to Chinatown, and becomes Chen`s partner. Danny soon discovers that not everything is quite how it should be with Chen, who has a lot of money & and overlooks many crimes in Chinatown. The Corruptor is a movie about the releationship between Chen and Wallace. I must say that I didn`t like Mark Wahlberg at all, because his performance is poor. Chow Yun-Fat carries this movie by himself, and he has a lot more dialogue now than in The Replacement Killers. If you like Chow Yun-Fat or actionflicks, you should consider watching this one night. It has not got as much action as The Replacement Killers, but it has a far better story and better acting. 8/10