'Double Tap'.you're probably wondering what it means, right? Well, for those of you who aren't shooting enthusiasts (I'm not, ok!), apparently the term means a pattern of the number '8' formed by firing twice consecutively at a cardboard target in a shooting competition. It can also be construed as two shots, fired consecutively, entering roughly the same spot in a target. Well, whatever
For your info, 'Double Tap' is a Hong Kong production directed by Lo Chi Leung ('Viva Erotica') and produced by Derek Yee ('My Dad is a Jerk', 'When I Fall in Love..with Both'). It stars actor/singer Leslie Cheung ('The Kid'), Alex Fong Chung-Sun ('The Rules of the Game'), Ruby Wong Cheuk-Ling ('Running Out of Time', 'Night Club'), Cheung Man-Kwong, Vincent Kok ('Metade Fumaca') and Monica Chan ('I.Q. Dudettes').
The plot? Ok, Rick (Leslie Cheung) is a professional gunsmith who's also a former champion of the IPSC (practical shooting) competition. Inspector Miu (Alex Fong Chung-Sun) is also a top shooter and Rick's only real rival. The problem is, Rick is also mentally imbalanced (read: psychophatic) and after a disaster at the shooting range, he discovers that he enjoys killing people.
Three years later, a team of police agents and a prosecution witness in a high profile case turns up dead in a hotel room. The killings were done by somebody who could fire ten shots with utmost accuracy within five seconds. This obviously took the doing of a champion marksman and suspicion inevitably falls on Rick. His girlfriend Colleen (Ruby Wong Cheuk-Ling), who conveniently overlooks the fact that she's in love with a psycho, is arrested on false charges laid by CID Joe, (Cheung Man-Kwong) and Rick gets really mad. He goes into hiding and threatens to kill one policeman per day until Colleen is released. (I wonder who wants to handle traffic duties, with a psycho killer targeting policemen hanging around.)
The movie 'Double Tap' sounds good at first, especially after watching the promo trailer and in the end, just about manages to deliver what it promises. The story has a slow start giving the audience the basics of the plot but after the deaths of the police agents, it begins to move at a thrilling pace. Leslie Cheung is really intense as the psychopathic and maniacal Rick. Alex Fong is in his element here as the cool, tough and passionate Inspector Miu. Ruby Wong Cheuk-Ling manages to give a credible performance but is confined by her role as Rick's loyal girlfriend from developing her character any further. The action scenes are exciting enough, with dangerous jumps from overhanging bridges into the heart of road traffic to explosive shootout scenes.
However, the line 'Are you ready!!', which is used to ask a shooter in a competition if he's ready to start, is used quite often in 'Double Tap' and might sound slightly corny to the viewer after a while. It always comes out at a time when Rick faces off against his opponents. Special effects aren't used much here and 'Double Tap' relies heavily on the pace of its story and nicely choreographed action scenes to entertain the audience. Kudos must be given to director Lo Chi Leung for some good work here. Overall, 'Double Tap' is your better-than-average action/thriller flick and should be worthy of the price of a cinema ticket.
A top shooter, Rick always comes up tops in competitions, beating even the police squad's top shooter, Mui. Though friends, they are also rivals. Rick had once shot and killed a man, and perhaps he liked the feeling of power when he holds a gun in his hand. When five people were shot and killed, clues led the police to Rick. But his girlfriend confessed to the murders, and Rick walked away as a free man. Now he threatens to kill a policeman a day until his girlfriend is release. Is he a man gone mad, or was he set up, resorting to desperate measures?
