"Infernal Affairs II" is a big, splashy follow up to last year’s "Infernal Affairs." The sequel is actually a prequel to establish the relationships and pecking order of the police and the triad factions that were portrayed in the first film. The movie’s success can easily be attributed to Alan Mak and Felix Chong for a screenplay that is brutal and full of double-dealings. The characters, Yan and Ming, take a back seat to Inspector Wong and triad members Sam and Ngai.

"Infernal Affairs II" is a vastly entertaining yarn that places Shawn Yu and Edisen Chen in the background and leaves the dynamic center around Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang and Francis Ng. Where the first film emphasized a sophisticated outlook between the police and the triads, IA2 is grittier, as a triad head is assassinated, creating a vacuum that causes a power struggle to ensue among the remaining leaders. Mak and Chong take the themes of moles and undercover agents to another plateau by making the police and the triads similar in their deceit and vileness. The lines are further blurred in terms of good and bad. Only the dark shades of each are displayed. Everyone in this prequel is evil.

Although a prequel, "Infernal Affairs II" can be viewed independently from the first movie without any problems. If you watch the films in sequence, the discrepancies are obvious and annoying, but the entertainment factor outweighs the rough and troubling transition issues. The script is so dense that many of the continuity problems are lost in the shuffle. Surprisingly, even with minimal dialogue, there is a lot said, but nothing is implicit, because each action creates an even more disturbing and deadly reaction. Andrew Lau and Alan Mak direct the movie with breakneck pacing. "Infernal Affairs II" is a worthy addition that merits viewing.