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"Announced at the last minute as the 'surprise movie' in competition at the Venice Film Festival, Mad Detective is concise and artful," writes Ray Bennett in the Hollywood Reporter. "It will appeal to movie-goers who like cop stories fast and furious but also complex and witty, particularly as it mostly eschews the ultraviolence of a number of Hong Kong crime pictures."



But for Variety's Derek Elley, the film, also screening in Toronto in a few days, is "a neat idea that doesn't quite hit the bull's-eye. The first teaming of helmer Johnnie To and writer-helmer Wai Ka-fai since the 2003 Andy Lau muscle-suit drama Running on Karma, pic about a loony cop who solves crimes through intuition rather than logic is a typically high Wai concept that's still a rewrite or two away from achieving the rigor of a To movie. Despite some cherishable, out-there moments, Detective is a bumpier dramatic ride than usual from the Milkyway Image alums, signaling more cultish biz than recent To-alone pics like Exiled".