Invisible Target
Encyclopedia
Invisible Target is a 2007 Hong Kong action film produced and directed by Benny Chan. The film stars Nicholas Tse
, Shawn Yue
and Jaycee Chan
as three police officers who are thrown together due to their backgrounds to bring down a criminal gang of seven led by Tien Yeng-seng (played by Wu Jing)
Wai King-ho is a rookie cop whose older brother, Wai King-tat, also a police officer, has been missing for an extended period. Deeply upset by police allegations that his brother has become a part of the criminal gang while infiltrating as an undercover, he was suspended from duty due to this connections with his now-wanted brother, and later confronted by both Chan and Fong who demand his brother's whereabouts. They form an alliance after Wai is rescued by Chan and Fong in a fight at a night club. Little Tiger is captured by Chan and is forced to lead the police to the gang's hideout. The gang appears however and kills Tiger after a chase, while injuring Chan and several of his colleagues.
It turns out that the surviving security guard is Ho Wing-keung, the manager of the security company, who colludes with the gang to rob the armoured truck. He is tracked down by the gang to a psychiatric hospital
, where he feigns a mental breakdown to escape detection by the gang. Chan, Fong and Wai arrive at the hospital, but fail to prevent his escape with the gang, who threaten his family to force him out. As the three pursue the gang, they run into an accident scene, where the gang shoots several police officers at the scene, hijacks a mini-bus with young children, and takes Wai as a hostage in the bus. Chan and Fong go after the bus with Ho in another car.
The gang members and the police officers engage in a lengthy confrontation, in which Wai discovers that his brother has his background exposed and killed by gang member Ronin Tien Yeng-yee. Ho is killed by Tien Yeng-seng to silence him, Wai is left handcuffed to the bus with the children and a timer bomb, while Chan and Fong are forced to collect the stolen cash from the robbery's mastermind at a funfair at Tamar
while chained to another timer bomb. Wai manages to free himself and rescue all the children, and discovers that the bomb is fake, suggesting that Ronin has no intention to harm the children. Chan and Fong approaches a man with a luggage at the funfair as instructed, but the man turns out to be Chief Inspector Sam, who is leading an operation to nap the gang. The operation goes awry, the timer bomb is ignited safely in the nick of time, and Sam was pulled away by Chan and Fong to a secluded area, where they attempt to explain their situation to him. It is then revealed that Sam is also colluding with the mastermind, and is promptly killed, resulting in Chan and Fong becoming suspects for the murder.
With the help of Fong's girlfriend Leung Hoi-lam from the Police Intelligence Department, Chan and Fong realise that the real mastermind is Senior Superintendent Cheung Man-yiu, who has orchestrated the armour truck robbery, double-crossed the gang resulting in the death of three of their members, and made off with the loot which he keeps hidden in a car in the Police Headquarters carpark. The remaining four members of the criminal gang arrive at the Headquarters in a police van masquerading as police officers to forcefully get the money back, just before the arrival of Chan, Fong and Wai. Senior Superintendent Mark Law Pui-keung begins to learn about the truth from data provided by Leung.
An extended showdown at the Police Headquarters ensues, resulting in the deaths of three criminals, multiple policemen including a Special Duties Unit
squad and Wai, who was beaten to death by Tien. An injured Tien was shot by Cheung, who nearly escapes arrest when he was later led to an ambulance by unsuspecting officers. He was subsequently shot dead by Chan and Fong when he tries to kill Law, who was led to another ambulance. Both Chan and Fong return to their police duties, but as a detective and a beat cop respectively. They also help take care of Wai's grandmother.
picked up multi-territory rights to release Invisible Target in all English-speaking territories. Dragon Dynasty
released a "two-disc ultimate edition" DVD in the United States on 10 June 2008, which contains much of the same special features found on the Hong Kong releases. A Blu-ray Disc edition of the film by the same company was later released in August 2010.
magazine, Perry Lam found that 'there is eloquence to the way Benny Chan tells his story,' but ultimately criticizes the film for 'fail[ing] to deliver'.
Nicholas Tse
Nicholas Tse is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actor and musician, and son of actor Patrick Tse. He is a member of the Emperor Entertainment Group...
, Shawn Yue
Shawn Yue
Shawn Yue is a Hong Kong actor and singer. A former model, he has starred in many films such as Jiang Hu and Infernal Affairs II and has established himself as a recognized face in Hong Kong cinema.- Background :...
and Jaycee Chan
Jaycee Chan
Jaycee Chan Jo-Ming is a Hong Kong actor and singer. In 2004, he released his first Mandarin CD album in Hong Kong. He is currently based in Taiwan to continue his music career.-Biography:...
as three police officers who are thrown together due to their backgrounds to bring down a criminal gang of seven led by Tien Yeng-seng (played by Wu Jing)
Plot
An armoured truck carrying $100 million of cash is attacked by a criminal gang which calls themselves the "Ronin Gang" with explosives as it stops at a traffic junction in front of a jewellery shop. All the security guards were shot dead except one, while responding police officers suffered serious casualties under the gunfire of the heavily armed gang members. The explosions also killed several civilians, including a lady in the shop. Six months later, the same gang reappears in Hong Kong, injuring a group of policemen, two critically, during a spot check. The dead woman in the jewellery shop was Crime Investigation Department detective Chan Chun's fiancee, while the injured policemen are led by Trainee Inspector Fong Yik-wei. Both officers vow revenge on the criminal gang.Wai King-ho is a rookie cop whose older brother, Wai King-tat, also a police officer, has been missing for an extended period. Deeply upset by police allegations that his brother has become a part of the criminal gang while infiltrating as an undercover, he was suspended from duty due to this connections with his now-wanted brother, and later confronted by both Chan and Fong who demand his brother's whereabouts. They form an alliance after Wai is rescued by Chan and Fong in a fight at a night club. Little Tiger is captured by Chan and is forced to lead the police to the gang's hideout. The gang appears however and kills Tiger after a chase, while injuring Chan and several of his colleagues.
It turns out that the surviving security guard is Ho Wing-keung, the manager of the security company, who colludes with the gang to rob the armoured truck. He is tracked down by the gang to a psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
, where he feigns a mental breakdown to escape detection by the gang. Chan, Fong and Wai arrive at the hospital, but fail to prevent his escape with the gang, who threaten his family to force him out. As the three pursue the gang, they run into an accident scene, where the gang shoots several police officers at the scene, hijacks a mini-bus with young children, and takes Wai as a hostage in the bus. Chan and Fong go after the bus with Ho in another car.
The gang members and the police officers engage in a lengthy confrontation, in which Wai discovers that his brother has his background exposed and killed by gang member Ronin Tien Yeng-yee. Ho is killed by Tien Yeng-seng to silence him, Wai is left handcuffed to the bus with the children and a timer bomb, while Chan and Fong are forced to collect the stolen cash from the robbery's mastermind at a funfair at Tamar
Tamar site
Tamar site , 4.2-hectare large, the former location of the naval basin attached to the headquarters of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong, is currently the site of the Central Government Offices of the Hong Kong SAR Government at the harbourfront of Central, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong.To the...
while chained to another timer bomb. Wai manages to free himself and rescue all the children, and discovers that the bomb is fake, suggesting that Ronin has no intention to harm the children. Chan and Fong approaches a man with a luggage at the funfair as instructed, but the man turns out to be Chief Inspector Sam, who is leading an operation to nap the gang. The operation goes awry, the timer bomb is ignited safely in the nick of time, and Sam was pulled away by Chan and Fong to a secluded area, where they attempt to explain their situation to him. It is then revealed that Sam is also colluding with the mastermind, and is promptly killed, resulting in Chan and Fong becoming suspects for the murder.
With the help of Fong's girlfriend Leung Hoi-lam from the Police Intelligence Department, Chan and Fong realise that the real mastermind is Senior Superintendent Cheung Man-yiu, who has orchestrated the armour truck robbery, double-crossed the gang resulting in the death of three of their members, and made off with the loot which he keeps hidden in a car in the Police Headquarters carpark. The remaining four members of the criminal gang arrive at the Headquarters in a police van masquerading as police officers to forcefully get the money back, just before the arrival of Chan, Fong and Wai. Senior Superintendent Mark Law Pui-keung begins to learn about the truth from data provided by Leung.
An extended showdown at the Police Headquarters ensues, resulting in the deaths of three criminals, multiple policemen including a Special Duties Unit
Special Duties Unit
The Special Duties Unit is an elite paramilitary tactical unit of the Hong Kong Police Force. Established in July 1974, it is a sub-division of the Police Tactical Unit...
squad and Wai, who was beaten to death by Tien. An injured Tien was shot by Cheung, who nearly escapes arrest when he was later led to an ambulance by unsuspecting officers. He was subsequently shot dead by Chan and Fong when he tries to kill Law, who was led to another ambulance. Both Chan and Fong return to their police duties, but as a detective and a beat cop respectively. They also help take care of Wai's grandmother.
Distribution
Film-based distributor The Weinstein CompanyThe Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company is an American film studio founded by Bob and Harvey Weinstein in 2005 after the brothers left the then-Disney-owned Miramax Films, which they had co-founded in 1979...
picked up multi-territory rights to release Invisible Target in all English-speaking territories. Dragon Dynasty
Dragon Dynasty
Dragon Dynasty is a joint venture started by The Weinstein Company and Genius Products. The company was created on May 23, 2006 for the sole purpose of distributing East Asian films on DVD in the US, whose licenses are held by, or will be acquired by The Weinstein Company...
released a "two-disc ultimate edition" DVD in the United States on 10 June 2008, which contains much of the same special features found on the Hong Kong releases. A Blu-ray Disc edition of the film by the same company was later released in August 2010.
Critical reception
The film opened to generally mixed reviews. Writing in MuseMuse (Hong Kong Magazine)
Muse is a bilingual Hong Kong-based multimedia publisher specializing in content related to Hong Kong's art and culture scene.. Until December 2010, Muse published an award-winning monthly arts and culture magazine...
magazine, Perry Lam found that 'there is eloquence to the way Benny Chan tells his story,' but ultimately criticizes the film for 'fail[ing] to deliver'.
Cast
- Nicholas TseNicholas TseNicholas Tse is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actor and musician, and son of actor Patrick Tse. He is a member of the Emperor Entertainment Group...
as Chan Chun - Shawn YueShawn YueShawn Yue is a Hong Kong actor and singer. A former model, he has starred in many films such as Jiang Hu and Infernal Affairs II and has established himself as a recognized face in Hong Kong cinema.- Background :...
as Inspector Carson Fong Yik-wei - Jaycee ChanJaycee ChanJaycee Chan Jo-Ming is a Hong Kong actor and singer. In 2004, he released his first Mandarin CD album in Hong Kong. He is currently based in Taiwan to continue his music career.-Biography:...
as Officer PC Wai King-ho - Wu Jing as Tien Yeng-seng
- Elanne KongElanne Kong-Discography:* Innocent * Shining * Show You * Elanne Kwong -TV series:-Film:-External links:* * at Sina Twitter...
as Leung Hoi-lam - Dominic LamDominic LamDominic Lam Ka-Wah is an actor in Hong Kong, and a disc jockey in both Vancouver, British Columbia and Toronto, Ontario.-Early Life in Hong Kong:...
as Senior Superintendent Cheung Man-yiu - Sam Lee as Ho Wing-keung
- Mark ChengMark ChengMark Cheng Ho-nam is a Hong Kong actor and martial artist. Cheng is perhaps best known as Lam Wing in 1996 film Tai Chi Boxer.-Film career:...
as Senior Superintendent Mark Law Pui-keung - Andy OnAndy OnAndy On Chi-kit is a Chinese American actor and martial artist.-Biography:On was born on 11 May 1977, in Providence, Rhode Island. As a native to the USA, Andy On can speak English, Mandarin and Cantonese...
as Ronin Tien Yeng-yee - Lisa LuLisa LuLisa Lu is a Chinese-American actress and documentary producer.-Life and career:Lu was born in Peking, China . Beginning in her teens, she was active in Chinese opera, or Kunqu, before emigrating to the United States...
as Yan Lu - Ken LoKen LoKen Low Wai-kwong is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist and a ex-member of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team.-Early life:...
as Inspector Wong Kam-Ming - Lam SuetLam SuetLam Suet is a Hong Kong actor.-Biography:Lam was born in Tianjin, and came to Hong Kong as a youth in 1979 to receive inheritance money left by his grandfather. Soon after all the money had been squandered and Lam had to work various odd jobs to make a living.In the mid-eighties he got employment...
as Loan Shark Cheng - Deep NgDeep NgDeep Ng is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter and actor. He is the winner of the 21st annual New Talent Singing Awards Hong Kong Regional Finals. Deep was well received by the viewers since the New Talent Singing Awards in 2002. His first EP Deep was released in 2003 with the hit debut single "先入為主"...
as Ng Ho-hong - Philip NgPhilip NgPhilip Wan-Lung Ng is a Hong Kong based actor and action choreographer.- Biography :...
as Tiger - Samuel Pang as Gangster O.D
- Kenny Wong as Sam Mok
- Anson Leung as Police Officer Chun
- Tommy Yuen as Gangster On
- Chan Tat-kwong as Cheng's bodyguard