Sons of the Neon Night Film Synopsis

A pharmaceutical heir seizes power after his father’s death, fueling a deadly vision of a ‘drugless city.’ As rival brothers, corrupt officers, and assassins clash, Hong Kong descends into chaos where the criminal underworld and authorities violently collide.

Explosion in Causeway Bay

In a cold winter setting in Hong Kong, snowfall drifts through neon-lit streets. A sudden, violent explosion rips through Causeway Bay, followed by a brazen shooting in the crowded downtown district. The chaos leaves civilians dead and injured. The attack appears to target a wealthy businessman, and news spreads that he was en route to a hospital for treatment.

Inside the hospital, the Beijing-based pharmaceutical magnate Li Guoqiang lies under guard, ostensibly in ill health. Unknown to the public, his empire is deeply entangled in illicit drug trafficking, and his legitimate facade masks a corrupt empire. As the bomb detonates, undercover forces and armed assailants infiltrate the hospital. Explosives demolish the wing, and in the ensuing conflagration, Li Guoqiang perishes. Before the blast, an undercover officer, Mai Junxian, dials emergency services, leaving a few seconds of cryptic voice recording.

Within an hour, Hong Kong is rocked by two major terror events—the street massacre and the hospital bombing. Public trust in law enforcement falters. Large numbers of police officers, fearing further attacks, go on strike. The government and police force are under pressure to restore order immediately.

Power Struggles and the Return of Old Allies

In the police force, Inspector Wong Chi-tat (Sean Lau) becomes the fall guy for the debacle. His reputation suffers, even as suspicions linger that he was complicit in certain drug shipments. Desperate to stabilize the situation, Commissioner invites retired Inspector Dik Man-kit (Tony Leung Ka-Fai) to return. Dik is a grizzled veteran, skeptical and haunted by past moral compromises. He is asked to help restore authority and lead investigations.

Meanwhile, Li Guoqiang’s sons become central to the unfolding power struggle. The elder, Li Wen Di, has long lived as a fugitive, beset by criminal indictments. The younger, Li Mo-tung (Takeshi Kaneshiro), is educated and mild-mannered, but excluded from expectations of leadership within the family business. With their father dead, Mo-tung sees an opportunity to clean up the empire’s image and reform its operations—though his motives remain murky. He confronts press scrutiny, and during a televised appearance in a building elevator, he plays the recorded 999 call left by Mai Junxian, implicating hidden players. To prevent further embarrassment to the police, Dik concedes to Mo-tung’s demand that he perform one service: assist his claim over the family legacy.

The “Cleaners” and the War on “Hungry Dogs”

Though Li Wen Di remains in hiding, he still exerts influence over the underworld and attempts to reclaim parts of the drug network. His cadre—known as the “Hungry Dogs”—conduct raids on Li Guoqiang’s distribution channels. In response, Mo-tung hires a covert hit team called the “Cleaners,” led by Ching Man-sing, Yeap “Little Yip,” and “Can Tou.” Their mission: eliminate unpredictables within the group and remove obstacles resisting Mo-tung’s control over the enterprise.

Mo-tung’s most trusted ally is his fiancée, Liu Sze-yan, a clinical therapist and pharmacist. She bridges Mo-tung’s public persona and clandestine schemes. Sze-yan has prior connection to Mai Junxian as his therapist, and is enlisted by the police to assist in their investigation. Unbeknownst to many, she is part of multiple networks, juggling duties to law, family, and power.

Confrontation with the Police

Mo-tung arranges a luxury dinner with the Italian drug kingpin Enzo and invites Wong Chi-tat uninvited. During the gathering, Wong tries to bargain: if Mo-tung agrees to inflate cocaine prices, Wong’s corruption-linked subordinates will be spared exposure. Mo-tung demands Wong reveal his undercover moles instead. In the ensuing conflict, Wong betrays his lieutenant A Jiao, who is brutally tortured and killed. Mo-tung raises prices, then unexpectedly orders a total drug ban across the territory overnight. The supply chain collapses. Withdrawal riots sweep the city, and methadone clinics are overwhelmed.

Wong, realizing he is trapped, approaches Mo-tung seeking negotiation. Mo-tung coldly tells him there is no turning back. Meanwhile, Dik Man-kit and Wong coordinate a major police assault on a suspected drug cache discovered in Chungking Mansions. A foreign drug syndicate resists heavily. Amid the firefight, many officers fall; Wong sacrifices himself in the final stand, dying among a mound of seized narcotics.

Brothers at Odds

Mo-tung issues a massive bounty on Wen Di: whoever kills him earns favor and fortune. Meanwhile, Wen Di retaliates, offering the same to his adversaries. Loyalties among the Cleaners begin to fracture under the weight of greed and betrayal. Ching Man-sing, realizing alliances have shifted, kills Little Yip and Can Tou under the pretense of eliminating competition. He infiltrates Wen Di’s convoy disguised as a police escort.

Wen Di arrives at the family altar to meet Mo-tung. Mo-tung rejects Wen Di’s offers to reunite and reveals his ultimate plan: to clean the family legacy, rebrand under the guise of prohibition, and monopolize pharmaceutical markets such as painkillers and sedatives across the city. The two brothers argue; Ching Man-sing ambushes Wen Di. Dik Man-kit arrives and shoots both conspirator and Wen Di. Wen Di dies, Mo-tung is wounded, and Ching falls beside them.

Aftermath and Uncertain Legacy

Mo-tung is hospitalized in critical condition and loses capacity. The two brothers’ duel ends in ruin. The pharmaceutical empire stands fractured and its succession unresolved. Meanwhile, Liu Sze-yan, now pregnant, becomes the next pivot of inheritance. As older insiders stage fresh power maneuvers, she stands at the center of a brewing war.

In the interim, a new threat emerges: Mai Junxian detonates further chaos, orchestrating unpredictable violence to dismantle old alliances. The film closes on the notion that in this neon-lit metropolis, blood binds more tightly than loyalty—and the next heir may not be born into it but forged from fire.