Election 2

Election 2
Original Hong Kong theatrical poster
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese黑社會:以和爲貴
Simplified Chinese黑社会:以和为贵
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinHēi Shè Huì Yǐ Hé Wéi Guì
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingHak1 Se5 Wui2 Ji5 Wo4 Wai4 Gwai3
Directed byJohnnie To
Written byYau Nai-Hoi
Yip Tin-Shing
Produced byDennis Law
Johnnie To
StarringLouis Koo
Simon Yam
Nick Cheung
Cheung Siu-fai
Lam Suet
Gordon Lam
CinematographyCheng Siu-Keung
Edited byLaw Wing-Cheong
Jeff Cheung
Music byRobert Ellis-Geiger
Production
companies
Distributed byChina Star Entertainment Group
Release date
  • 27 April 2006 (2006-04-27)
Running time
92 minutes
CountryHong Kong
LanguagesCantonese
Mandarin
Box officeUS$1.8 million[1]

Election 2 (literal title: Black Society: Harmony is a Virtue), also known as Triad Election in the United States, is a 2006 Category III Hong Kong crime film directed by Johnnie To with a large ensemble cast including Louis Koo, Simon Yam and Nick Cheung. A sequel to the 2005 film Election, the film concludes the events of the first film centring on triad boss Lok, who struggles to get re-elected as his two-year term approaches its end. He faces competition from Jimmy, who wants to retire from the triad to be a legitimate businessman, but gets drawn into the conflict surrounding the election.

Election 2 enjoyed box office success in Hong Kong and being shown as an "Official Selection" at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. Afterwards, it became a popular hit on the international festival circuit.

Stephen Teo, author of Director in Action: Johnnie To and the Hong Kong Action Film (2007), wrote that "Election 2 is the most directly political film made in Hong Kong in the post-97 era."[2]

  1. ^ "Box office by Country: Triad Election Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 4 June 2012
  2. ^ "Director in Action: Johnnie To and the Hong Kong Action Film". Hong Kong University Press. 1 June 2007. p. 182. ISBN 9789622098398.