Duk sit dai jong

A Guilty Conscience is an absolutely stunning courtroom drama and thriller from Hongkong that already qualifies as an early candidate for movie of the year.

This movie simply gets everything right. First of all, the characters are absolutely intriguing. You have a cold-hearted femme fatale who believes she is above the law. Up next, there is her weak, shallow and despicable husband who turns out to be a liar and a cheater. On the other side, you have a creative young mute girl who suffers more than any human should ever do. There is also her desperate mother who gets sentenced for a crime she obviously didn't commit and thinks about suicide time and again. Said lady is supported by a team of barristers. One of them is the son of an imprisoned gang leader who has seen both sides of the law. Up next, you have a young, incorruptible and ambitious woman who wants to build a successful career. And finally, you have this movie's main character, an aged barrister tormented by greed and recognition who is going through significant changes to fight for the hopeless and the poor.

All these wonderful characters wouldn't come to life without excellent actresses and actors and they all deliver the goods and then some. Wong Chi-Wah in particular impresses as versatile, profound and balanced lead character as the veterans convinces with all his charisma, credibility and experience.

The plot is absolutely gripping from start to finish as the movie doesn't include one single second of boredom throughout its satisfactory running time of two hours and fifteen minutes. The story revolves around a mute girl who was assaulted in her own home and tragically dies a few days later at the hospital. Her mother was drunk and sleeping on a couch in the neighbouring room before she realized that something was wrong and saw the girl's father trying to help his daughter next door. The mother's barrister thinks that this is an easy case to win for his client but his obsession with alcohol, drugs and recognition come into play as his case turns into tragedy and sends the innocent mother to prison for seventeen years. Ridden by guilt, the barrister tries to motivate his disappointed male colleague and his upset female colleague to right the wrong. After two long years, that opportunity arrises when a key witness confesses in his suicide note that he was bribed to make a false statement to send the mother to prison. This time around, the barrister and his team try to give it everything they have got to free an innocent woman and go against one of the city's most influential families.

Another strength of this film is its excellent mixture of genres. This is first and foremost a tense courtroom thriller. However, this movie is also a desperate family drama. This film however also interjects a few mild action scenes and elements of humour at the right moments to keep its pace gripping and steady.

Most importantly, this film has a profoundly human message that can also be seen as a metaphor for the current state of affairs in Hongkong. This message will resonate with viewers long after the credits will have stopped rolling. This message will even shake up the toughest of the tough and bring some tears to their eyes.

Don't hesitate any longer and watch this wonderful movie as soon as you can. Try to catch it on the big screen to appreciate it in its full beauty or purchase it once it's available to support these wonderful filmmakers. Anyone who appreciates excellent dramas or thrillers should definitely watch this moving masterpiece and early candidate for movie of the year. Make sure to watch this film all the way to the end since there are some additional scenes during the credits and a wonderful Lunar New Year wish from the most important actresses and actors. Since this is the Year of the Rabbit, I would like to wish you all to jump further and higher this year to make your wildest dreams come true.

Obviously this movie has an alternative motive. It's a complaint to the system but over the top, almost as if in sulking anger and disenchantment. Maybe disillusioned as well.

Supposedly based on a real life case but this court room drama takes a life on its own. I like the acting of the crown lawyer much better as he's a bit more restrained. But then that's the counter to the defending lawyer.

The case is about a cover-up really. Of rich family blaming the poor or underprivileged. It's not bad, but probably picks up what the sentiment of the general population. So kind of court room Rocky. A feel good movie. So don't expect any logic in the arguments , or any legal sense or the court proceedings to be accurate in any stretch. It's all for dramatic effect.

"Adrian Lam" (Dayo Wong) is a magistrate who doesn't really care about his job. He gets a bit of a shock, though, when his new boss sends him back to the benches where he must, again, actually practice law. It's here, after a night on the booze, that he turns up to defend a woman charged with the negligent homicide of her young son. A combination of his laziness, incompetence and his hangover leaves this woman hung out to dry when one of the witnesses - from whom he didn't get a written deposition - changes his story. Off to jail she goes and into a maelstrom of despair goes he before the guilt starts to kick in, and he decides to get his act together. His co-defending counsel "Evelyn" from the original trial (Renci Yeung) and he decide to try and convince the convicted "Jolene" (Louise Wong) to let them work on an appeal and the remainder of this rather flat courtroom drama follows their efforts. It starts off quite entertainingly, with a bit of a tetchy dynamic between the lawyers and to be fair, Dayo Wong is quite proficient as the bored and rather indolent lawyer. Sadly, though, once the ship is all upright again, the story becomes one of rather predicable family intrigue and power-broking that exposes us to many from a supporting cast that are as unremarkable as the dialogue. The photography has something of a television feature to it and the denouement, though quite lively paced - well you can see that coming from space. At 2¼ hours it is also far too long with just not enough meat on the story to sustain it. Perhaps a more judiciously cut edit and a few fewer side-stories might have made it more of a watchable "Perry Mason" style drama, but as it is - I was a bit bored by the end.

A Guilty Conscience has some of the most absurd, implausible courtroom scenes I have ever seen. The climax is so dramatic that it makes soap operas look grounded. It looks like the most exhausting trial ever. Lawyers shout at each other as if they are in a heated debate contest.

Our protagonist is the lawyer version of Doctor House: A bitter, talky person that solves cases in his own way. He is played by Dayo Wong, who used to be an infamous box office poison. Here he is better than ever (This doesn't mean he is great). The start of the plot is standard legal drama material (Think a Law and Order episode). Wong fails a big case involving a child's death, causing harm to an innocent person. Two years later the case returns... Yes, a Guilty Conscience recycles an ancient "redemption arc" story, yet it is done in a gloriously entertaining way.

None of the story is believable. They exist in an overwritten screenplay. Despite looking like and sounding like one, this is not a screwball comedy. Although when you think about it, certain parts are funny for the wrong reasons. The sudden rise of absurdity leaves me with a mixed feeling, but I sure am entertained.

NOTE: If you're planning to see this in theaters, be aware that the audio mixing is obnoxiously terrible. The dialogue is so loud, and gets covered by the even more deafening music. I felt like the lawyers were shouting beside my ears during the trial.

The plot of A Guilty Conscience is a bit unrealistic at times. For example, it is hard to believe that a single mother would be able to afford a top-notch defense attorney, especially in Hong Kong, where the cost of living is so high. Additionally, the way that the attorney is able to uncover the truth about the woman's innocence is a bit too convenient.

Here are some specific examples of the unrealistic plot:

The single mother is able to afford a top-notch defense attorney, even though she is not wealthy.

The attorney is able to uncover the truth about the woman's innocence in a very short amount of time.

The police are not able to find any evidence that the woman is guilty.