The Corruptor

Cast View all

	Yun-Fat Chow	Nick Chen
	Mark Wahlberg	Danny Wallace
	Ric Young	Henry Lee
	Paul Ben-Victor	Schabacker
	Jon Kit Lee	Jack
	Andrew Pang	Willy Ung
	Elizabeth Lindsey	Louise Deng
	Brian Cox	Sean Wallace
	Byron Mann	Bobby Vu
	Kim Chan	Benny Wong
	Bill MacDonald	Vince Kirkpatrick
	Susie Trinh	Amy San
	Ho Chow	Black Eyes
	Olivia Yap	Tai
	Lynda Chiu	Kim
	Marie Matiko	May
	Pak-Kwong Ho	Phan Ho
	Tim Progosh	Lackey
	Byron Lawson	Tall Kid
	Beau Starr	Captain Stan Klein
	LeRoy Allen	Guard One
	Simon B. Cotter	Lawyer
	Frank Pellegrino	Large Agent
	Tovah Feldshuh	U.S. Attorney Margaret Wheeler
	Tig Fong	Sumo Guard

Crew View all

Director	James Foley
Writer	Robert Pucci
Producer	Bill Carraro, Terence Chang, Dan Halsted, Jonathan Krauss, Nicholas Rich, Jay Stern, Oliver Stone, Brian Witten
Musician	Junior Cyrus Baron, Carter Burwell
Photography	Juan Ruiz Anchia

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Notes

My quick rating - 5.9/10. I seem to pop this one on once a decade, but for some reason, I’ve never actually reviewed it—so what better time than now while I’m updating jackmeat.com?

Directed by James Foley, this flick brings a stylish crime-thriller approach to the well-worn “veteran cop and rookie partner” dynamic, with Chow Yun-Fat carrying the movie—as expected. Mark Wahlberg plays the fresh-faced recruit, while Chow Yun-Fat’s seasoned officer navigates the murky waters of corruption within New York’s Chinatown. The story follows the duo as they attempt to take down the Chinese Triads, but moral lines blur when the criminals attempt to bribe Wahlberg’s character, leading to complications in trust and loyalty.

The film takes clear inspiration from John Woo, showcasing stylish action sequences and well-choreographed gunfights. While nothing here is groundbreaking, the shootouts are well executed, and the tension in certain moments keeps the film engaging. Some of the dialogue can feel a bit jumbled, especially when dealing with non-English-speaking actors, but the overall narrative holds up well. The double-cross and resulting plot points all get wrapped up in a very dramatic and convenient way.

Many considered The Corruptor to be Chow Yun-Fat’s first strong Hollywood outing, though I’d argue The Replacement Killers did a better job the year before highlighting his talents. That said, this is still a solid action flick that has aged decently, even if my younger self might have rated it higher back in the day. The chemistry between the two leads is believable, and the film effectively balances action with character drama, even if it doesn’t quite hit classic status. It's a stylish, well-acted crime thriller with some great action set pieces, even if it doesn’t break new ground. Still worth a revisit every now and then.

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