Synopsis: A rookie cop teams up with a former detective with a supernatural gift, to hunt down a serial killer. (89 Mins)

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Views: The awesome Lau Ching Wan gives one of his best-ever roles as Detective Bun, a genius detective who goes to goes to extreme lengths to solve a case. And like many geniuses, it seems he has a screw loose as shown in his introductory scene where he solves a murder by re-enacting the case – such as stabbing a hanging pig in the middle of a room, before climbing into a suitcase so that he can be thrown down many flights of stairs. Bloodied and dizzy, Bun gets to his feet announcing the murderer and the case is closed. Soon after, at the retirement of a senior officer (in a cameo by Eddy Ko), Detective Bun offers him a goodbye present by cutting off a piece of his own ear – an act that sees him fired from the force. Five years later, unemployed and living with his long-suffering (ex) wife, Bun's mental illness has seemingly gotten worse and things are dull. Inspector Ho (Andy On), a young member of the force who admires Bun greatly, approaches him for help on a case that involves a stolen gun, and a dirty cop named Ko (Gordon Lam) who suffers from Multiple Personality Disorder. Luckily enough, Bun has been blessed (or cursed) with the ability to see the true personalities of others, and soon finds himself facing off against Officer Ko and his 7 inner persons which reignites his flame for detective work!

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Johnnie To and Wai Ka Fai's Mad Detective is pretty damn amazing and gave me vibes similar to that of the incredible, Running On Karma, which was their previous project together before this. Wonderfully constructed and so off-beat, you may possibly need to watch it twice to grasp the cleverness of it. That said, it really is a simple premise that the directors decide to take on a more complex journey – albeit in the most entertaining way – offering plenty of typical Johnnie To moments such as unexpectedly humour, exciting action sequences, Mexican stand-off's, mystery and suspense, and plenty of stunning visuals courtesy of cinematographers Cheng Siu Keung and To Hung Mo. Having worked on a host of Johnnie To films from Loving You to Blind Detective and many more, Cheng was also behind the lens of many great Hong Kong titles such as Fight Back To School 2, Satan Returns, Ip Man 4, Zen Of Sword, and Black Cat 2 – of which he was also the executive director for. Cheng would also go on to direct Cynthia Khan's Forbidden Arsenal and Sea Wolves from the In The Line Of Duty Series, as well as White Lotus Cult in 1993 which was inspired by Once Upon A Time In China. It's clear the pair make a great team, with To Hung Mo working alongside Cheng on many Johnnie To titles having worked as a focus puller on the aforementioned White Lotus Cult, right after starting in the industry on Tsui Hark's Green Snake which was made the same year.​ As per usual, To puts to use the skills of his cast members, many of whom have been working with him for some time now. Lau Ching Wan, who started working with To in the early-mid 1990s is just amazing as Detective Bun and I would say that this is probably one of his finest moments without a doubt, and Andy On hangs up his kicking boots for a more serious, dramatic role with very little fighting required. That said, he does a great job here and is a pivotal character in the storyline. Gordon Lam continues his streak of bad guys roles wonderfully as Officer Ko, the killer with 7 personalities – one is which is played by To regular Lam Suet, who is as great as always. All benefit from a great supporting cast which includes, Kelly Lin, Flora Chan, and Jay Lau, as well as many others. Assistant Director Jeff Cheung also appears as one of Lam's 7 personalities and has continued to work under To for a number years now. Music-maker Xavier Jamaux makes his feature film debut as a composer and creates a fantastic and strange score that definitely fits the tone of the movie. Since his work on Mad Detective, Xavier has gone on to cover many other To titles including Sparrow, Don't Go Breaking My Heart, and Drug War...

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Mad Detective is yet another incredible piece from Hong Kong that benefits greatly from To's artistic direction and Wai's writing, which proves as a great return to form for it's leading star. While it may seem like such a dark and serious film, for the most part, the directors provide enough light-heartedness to help get you through it – although without ruining the general flow of things. It's different, it's odd, yet it works and isn't as confusing as many other reviewers would lead you to believe. The film is a stunning watch and entertains on many levels which gets two thumbs up from me and (once again) shames any similar types of crime mysteries that have come out of Hollywood in the last 20 years!

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Overall: Well worth the watch, Johnnie To and Wai Ka Fai return to form with an exciting and unusual piece that makes Mad Detective one of their best!