When a ruthless gang of criminals stages a daring armored car heist in broad daylight, they leave a massive wake of destruction and dead bodies in their path. Among the dead is the fiancé of police detective Chan Chun (Nicholas Tse), the typical loose cannon cop who now has nothing to live for, and is bent on revenge. Meanwhile, detective Carson Fong (Shawn Yue) runs afoul of the same ruthless gang, leading him down a path that will introduce him to Chun. But wait, there's more. Rookie cop Wai King (Jaycee Chan) is trying to find out the fate of his older brother, an undercover cop who has gone missing. Of course, King's brother was investigating the gang that Chun and Fong are now hunting, resulting in the inevitable three-way team up.

The plot becomes convoluted in the typical Hong Kong fashion when it is revealed that the gang was betrayed by someone they were working with who has taken the money they stole from the armored car heist. In the process, three of the gangsters were killed. This pushes cold-blooded gang leader Tien Yeng Seng (Wu Jing) down his own path of revenge as he tries to collect the money he and his brothers in crime have stolen. Of course, all of this leads to an inevitable showdown complete with massive explosions, tons of flying bullets, and break-neck stunts as the cast beats the crap out of each other; but not before all three cops bond in brotherhood, figure out which cop was working with the gang, and King discovers the fate of his brother.

The problem with many Hong Kong films--at least as they are perceived by Western audiences--are that the plots can become overly complicated and convoluted. At some point, even in the best of Hong Kong actions films, it is quite likely that silly gweilo audiences will scratch their heads in confusion. This is true of Invisible Target, which essentially features four main characters--the three cops and the gang leader--as well as a host of supporting characters, all of whom seem to have their own specific subplot, all fighting for the attention of the audience amidst a barrage of flying hot lead and explosions. It all becomes a bit overwhelming. And to make matters worse, for an action film Invisible Target is heavy on exposition, to the extent the film frequently slows to a grinding halt as the characters simply talk, talk and talk.

The script for Invisible Target tends to be a typical Hong Kong action film weighed down with melodrama and heavy-handed dialog. There are more than a few scenes where the characters expound on virtue, honor and the nature of good and evil, which are fine in measured doses, but seem to go on forever in a film that clocks in at over two hours. As the film moves along at what can only be described as a stop-and-go pace, the whole thing just starts to drag more and more, until you don't even care that much about getting another kick-ass action sequence--you just want it to be over.

As an action film, Invisible Target delivers the goods. There is top-notch stunt work, including an amazing chase sequence that includes Nicholas Tse getting hit by a bus that must be seen to be appreciated. But the film suffers from being too long, with too much expository dialog and one of those simple Hong Kong plots that still manages to be convoluted (I'm still trying to figure out how that happens). At the end of the day, Invisible Target is a mixed bag of tricks, as it offers some inspired action sequences, while at the same time inducing more than a few yawns and confused looks as it grinds to halt whenever it tries to actually be about something.

Video:
Invisible Target is presented 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. As with every release from Dragon Dynasty that I have seen, the picture quality is excellent and image transfer is great. The picture is crisp, with vibrant colors, and overall, even when the film's pace slows down, it is great to look at.

Audio:
Invisible Target is presented with several different language tracks: Cantonese Dolby 5.1, Cantonese DTS and English Dolby 5.1, with optional subtitles in English and Spanish. The audio quality on all the language tracks is good, with solid sound mixes and levels that remain consistent throughout. The script, which leans toward the heavy-handed and melodramatic, comes across all the more so when it is spoken in English.

Bonus Material:
"Fully loaded" is the best way to describe this two-disc collection. Disc One includes an audio commentary with cast members Jaycee Chan, Shawn Yue and Andy On, as well as go-to guy and Hong Kong cinema expert Logan Bey. The commentary is good, but as with all the bonus material to be found, it is really meant for those that really loved this film (of which I was not one). "Orchestrated Mayhem: The Making of Invisible Target" (25 min.) has the same problems as the film itself--the only time it is particularly interesting is when it focuses on the action. Disc Two features a ton of material, including interviews with director Benny Chan (22 min.), and cast members Jaycee Chan (19 min.)--who happens to be the son of Jackie Chan, Shawn Yue (19 min.), Wu Jing (28 min.), Philip Ng (26 min.), Vincent Sze (15 min.) and Andy On (20 min.). "Fight for the Glory: Constructing the Action Sequences of Invisible Target" (19 min.) goes behind the scenes of the action sequences, but spends as much time talking about what is happening as it does actually showing it. There are also four deleted scenes and two extended scenes. If you really like the movie, you'll go nuts for all of the extras, because there is more than enough stuff to keep you occupied for hours. But, if you're like me, and you kinda/sorta like the movie, but only for the action sequences, then the bonus material will not hold that much interest.

Final Thoughts:
There are some great action sequences to be found, and even solid performances, but the film runs too long and when there is no action, it pretty much grinds to a painful halt. Definitely worth watching if you're an action fan, and especially if you appreciate Hong Kong cinema, but I can't see running out to buy Invisible Target.