Triad Election is Hong Kong’s Godfather, a first-rate gangland saga that combines intricate power plays and brutal violence. The sequel to 2005’s Election (which also shows at the Cinematheque this weekend) details the twisted schemes of two crime factions struggling for domination. The machinations are both complex and vicious (one guy is dismembered and ground into dog food). Director Johnnie To rarely takes sides — one mobster is as ruthless as the next. In the end, no one is untouched by all the corruption, conspiracies, and carnage.
Thu., Aug. 23, 9 p.m.; Sun., Aug. 26, 7 p.m.

This article appears in Aug 22-28, 2007.