Running a brief 90 minutes with opening and closing credits, “Eye in the Sky” moves with clockwork precision as it follows a Hong Kong police surveillance unit on the hunt for an elusive criminal mastermind.

The story benefits from strong casting and an unusual choice of protagonist, in this case a rookie female police officer named Bobo (Kate Tsui), who wants to make the Surveillance Unit, or SU. She fails a test given by chubby, middle-aged superior Wong (Simon Yam), but Wong decides to take her under his wing anyway.

“Don’t you look silly, unlike a cop,” Wong explains, adding that her harmless appearance will help when she’s tailing suspects.

The picture opens with an elaborately choreographed sequence in which about a dozen players move across the city chessboard. They eventually sort themselves out into two camps: the SU and a gang of crooks lead by the ruthless Shan (Tony Leung).

Early scenes deftly establish the dynamics of both sides. Members of the SU have an affectionate but brutally honest habit of assigning each other codenames (Bobo is known as Piggy; Wong as Dog Head). Meanwhile, Shan’s minions want a bigger cut and more action — and, against Brother Shan’s advice and orders, they’re willing to take stupid risks to get it. For his part, Shan stays behind the scenes or, in this case, literally above it all. During the gang’s heists, he remains on nearby rooftops, watching but never actively taking part in the crime.

Tasked to locate Shan, the SU spends day and night looking for leads. Wong makes it clear that the SU leaves the dangerous part of apprehending criminals to the police “hit team.” The SU only watches. One scene brings the point home. During a stakeout, Bobo and Wong witness the beating of a pedestrian and, when Bobo wants to help, Wong tells her to stay put. “Back to work,” he orders.

That sets up the final moral dilemma Bobo faces. “Eye in the Sky” proceeds to a bloody conclusion that pays off emotionally and viscerally, in large part because the audience cares about Bobo. Yes, it might be hard to accept her as an officer of the law and she has an irritating habit of breaking down and crying under pressure — but Tsui’s endearing portrayal adds a human dimension to the story.

In an age of the 150-minute blockbuster, “Eye in the Sky” is one of the few pictures that might have benefited from an extra 20 minutes to elaborate on some of the relationships between characters. Bobo and Wong develop a touching daughter-father give and take, but we never see them off work or in a different environment. Shan’s gangster mentor makes a brief appearance that adds some emotional baggage to Shan’s character, but the scene suggests so much more than it delivers.

Director Yau and co-screenwriter Au Kin-yee also use the idea of the surveillance camera more as the picture’s premise and central gimmick than as an opportunity to explore deeper themes or more topical issues. In England, for instance, CCTV has gained the moral upper ground after playing a major role in apprehending suspected terrorists. Ultimately, “Eye in the Sky” passes no judgment on this all-seeing gaze trained upon Hong Kong’s citizens. Indeed, as the picture presents it, the Special Administrative Region is a world of cellphone cameras and CCTV, where someone, somewhere is watching you — but for your own good.

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