video transcript

Drugs and death penalty take center stage as Hong Kong director Johnnie To brings his latest film to the Rome Film Festival. "Drug War" tells the story of a group of detectives seeking to finish off a large-scale drug ring. Confusion engulfs the operation after the capture of a drug lord, who strikes a deal with the police in order to save himself from death penalty. SOUNDBITE Director, Johnnie To, saying (English): "The idea actually came from the fact that not many countries in the world give death sentence to drug traffickers and other criminals, whereas in China you can be sentenced to death even if you traffic a very small amount, it's still a crime punishable by death which is something I found fascinating." The action thriller is To's first movie shot entirely on location in mainland China. SOUNDBITE Director, Johnnie To, saying (English): "The mainland China market is of course very important. You find a lot of investors and funding, and it's a very important market also because of the public. The number of audiences is ever growing." "Drug War" stars Gao Yun Xiang and Wallace Chung and is screening in competition at the festival.