The design of Johnnie To’s latest masterpiece resembles a tapestry. Drug War proceeds mainly in short takes, and the editing (supervised by To’s longtime collaborator David Richardson) brings them together in a manner akin to cross-stitching, cutting between radically different perspectives and kinds of movement within the frame. In a typical scene, To will jump from an overhead shot to a low-angle one, from a long-shot to a close-up, or from an objective master shot to the subjective point-of-view of a surveillance camera. The constant visual bustle shows some affinities with that of the late Tony Scott, but where Scott created mosaics, To maintains a fluid sense of progression. The filmmaking is graceful, even rapturous—which seems especially remarkable given the gritty subject matter.
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Directed by Johnnie To
