If you're keying on this film's Category III rating and hoping to see copious amounts of boobs and blood, you're probably going to be disappointed. Actually, most anyone is going to be let down a bit with Rules of the Game, because it's just simply a very generic Triad-themed drama.

Despite dozens of chopper slashings and a fairly disturbing rape scene, the Category III rating here probably came more into play due to Rules of the Game's usage of Triad rituals, which are displayed as the veteran Shing (Alex Fong) inducts the hot-headed David (Louis Koo) into the Hong Kong underworld. The usual "rags-to-riches" Triad story follows its' embedded cinematic roadmap, having David quickly rising up the ranks, which leads to a bloody confrontation during the finale, where characters drop off left and right, with no real resolution given to the story.

Many times, especially with a genre like the Triad drama that has had so many entries introduced, the journey to these sorts of nebulous ends can still be great fun -- at least if the film-makers and/or the actors are up to the task of actually trying to produce something that will stand out in a sea of similar releases. While the results here aren't as bad as the plethora of cheap crud churned out by fly-by-night companies that quickly flew to the bargain bin of video stalls all over Hong Kong, Rules of the Game doesn't exactly go out of its' way to be the class valedictorian, either.

This somewhat negative view of the movie might just be something spewed from this reviewer's jaded world view, since there are a good number of positive takes postured on various internet sites. I will agree on the consensus most everyone wrote about and say that Alex Fong is the biggest reason to watch this movie. His compelling performance makes his despicable character almost heroic, and enjoyable to watch no matter what you think of his moral compass. But a great acting job ultimately can't save Rules of the Game from tumbling into the clutches of the mediocre.

RATING: 5