As nice as "A Fistful of Dollars"

Rating: 7/10 (6 July 2008)

A nice adaptation of "Infernal Affairs' (2002) aka "Mou Gaan Dou" which was so popular that it spawned at least two other sequel/prequel/equal releases. (I should check - it might be up to MGD V by now.) The "feel" of Boston is a nice touch, some of the characters even have decent bostonian accents - the only knock might be the too neat a wrap up at the end.
Most adaptations viz. "The Magnificent Seven" attempt to capture the spirit of "The Seven Samurai" suffer rather badly. Even "Point of No Return" (1993) which is virtually a scene by scene reprise of Luc Besson's "Nakita" (1990) is a pale reflection of the original. Maybe, if he directed the Hollywood version, too; it would've made a difference - but how do you bowl a 300 game twice? The only adaptation I like is "Per un Pugno di Dollari" (1964) aka "A Fistful of Dollars" by Sergio Leone. I won't give away the title, but it's also by Kurosawa.
The best thing about adaptations is that it brings many of us to seek out the originals - the only problem is that there is scant recognition given by Hollywood to the originals (probably to avoid paying royalties). But keep reading these comments; there are plenty of us who will direct you to the (usually better) originals, and give credit where credit is due.