The Killer (1989) [SPOILERS]

Sydney: "Don't you want to check the weapon?"
Ah Jong: "There's no need. I trust you."

Chow Yun Fat is the confident and elegant hitman Ah Jong. He is unlike any cold-blooded killer -- he is the ideal image of a man. He is heroic and has a strong sense of honour and loyalty that's becoming a hindrance in this ever changing complicated world.

The Killer is a romantic film centred on friendship, redemption, and honor.

However, like the redemption which Ah Jhong seeks was never fulfilled in the end, the friendships between the characters are not without some sort of power struggle either.

I love every aspect of this film, especially the stand-off sequence between Ah Jhong and Lee (an obsessive policeman) in Jenny's apartment. However, the more minor storyline between Ah Jong and Sydney (Ah Jhong's manager and friend) is what I would like to focus on.


If Ah Jong and Lee are different sides of the moon, Ah Jong and Sydney are probably different sides of a coin.

In the scene where Sydney came to Ah Jong’s house to deliver information, Ah Jong deliberately throws a can of beer at Sydney. Sydney misses the catch. It is revealed that he retired from being a hitman because of previous injuries to his right hand.

Sydney's expression is that of self-loathing and regret when he said that his hand will never recover, and a hitman is nothing without his hand.

Ah Jong rudely opens the can and shoves it into Sydney’s hand, spilling froth onto his friend’s suit and face. Again, the can slips out of Sydney’s right hand, but he quickly recovers and catches it with his left.

I personally interprets this as despise and anger on Ah Jong’s end. Imagine the one person whom you probably always looked up to -- or at least respected because you were on a par with each other -- to loose his self-confidence and be so discouraging. That gesture – Ah Jong shoving the beer can – was like a silent way of saying ‘Shut up and man up! The friend I know needs no pity!’

Sydney is a more realistic character in that he is not perfect in every way like Ah Jong. He accepts the fact that he sounded hopeless (by not responding to the froth spilling on his face). But Ah Jong’s action also encouraged, or at least prompted, Sydney to state that ‘I still have dignity, my friend’ through his actions of catching the can.

Another scene is when after Ah Jong escapes the ambush by the triad, Sydney comes to his house to deliver the payment. Ah Jong temporarily puts his gun down to open the suitcase containing the money. Sydney quickly grabs the gun to point at Ah Jong. The suitcase is full of blank paper. Neither is the gun loaded.

They both realises sometimes fate does not allow one to act upon free will – Sydney knew Ah Jong would not kill him, even when the bitter expression of being double-crossed is written on the latter's face. But would Sydney, the weaker character, kill Ah Jong if it was his last and only choice?

Even if betrayal crossed Sydney’s mind for only a split of a second…how could he betray someone who holds the utmost trust in him? How could he even show his dishonourable side to a respectful man? It is evident that Sydney understood that he could not betray Ah Jong because of difference in their strength of character. Sydney has a code of honour too, as well as shame and conscious. He realised he has lost his skills, but he still has dignity and a promise to be kept. That’s why Sydney decided to be loyal to his words and persistently beg the triad boss for Ah Jong’s payment, even when being treated like a dog. Approval and friendship from Ah Jong is above anything else. Honourable friendship is so rare that it's worth sacrificing one's life for.

Another interesting point is that even though Sydney is willing to confront the triad boss to keep his words, he still realises that each must fight for his own. His own fight is that against himself and the triad boss for a promise and redemption (to Ah Jong). Ah Jong’s fight is that against himself and the triad boss for life and redemption (to Jenny). The honour and redemption between this pair comes from respecting one another and trusting one’s friends’ abilities.

In the end, Sydney still expresses his self-doubt and regrets failure. But at least he has won back the friendship and respect of a friend – the most honorable man to ever exist.




Picture From Google. (I don't know which version of the film this cover art came from. It's not my favourite, but it is one of the better ones with only Chow Yun Fat in it.) 

I borrowed the film in DVD distributed by Zoke Culture. It was dubbed in Mandarin. The simplified Chinese subtitles were bizarrely different from (and a lot of the times even out of sync with) the dubbing, therefore the English translations of dialogue and character name came from IMDB.