Eddie plays Scott Roper a San Francisco Police Department negotiator. Roper is the best in the business and he gets the worst jobs when things look pretty hopeless. The film opens with him sorting out a bank siege where he skilfully negotiates the release of some hostages before having to shoot Earl, the drug crazed bank robber. All?s well that ends well and Roper manages to save lives, end the siege and please his boss enough to get a raise. But he is asked to take on a new partner, Kevin McCall, fresh from the SWAT team and initially at least he isn?t too keen on the idea.

The new boy?s wide array of skills is put through a series of tests as the pair get more and more comfortable with each other, finally getting in to the field to take on a jewel thief holding people hostage. Thief Michael Korda knows a fair bit about Police procedure and almost makes a getaway. In a lengthy chase scene the cops follow him on foot, then in a car and finally down a seemingly never ending hill in San Francisco on the cable car. Fortunately the good guys are up to the challenge and they get their man.

But even from jail the bad guy reaches out through his cousin to attack Roper?s girlfriend and the tension rises as Korda manages to escape and goes after Roper and the $10 million in jewels he almost stole. Roper and his buddy McCall eventually track him to a disused shipyard where a series of big explosions, lost opportunities and plot twists keep the excitement going until Korda blows himself up in a pile of petrol barrels. Fortunately Roper and his girlfriend live happily ever after.

This is a fairly thin plot with the explosions thrown in to keep things a little interesting. It is clear from the start that Murphy will get the girl. We just know he and his new partner will eventually hit it off; we know the bad guys will lose and we can guess that no harm will come to the important characters. It was rather predictable and suffers badly in comparison to other Murphy police flicks like Beverley Hills Cop. Ho hum ,the good cops chase the really bad guy, they put the really bad guy away, they lose him, they find him and they get rid of him without getting hurt. Next please!

THE EXTRAS

Chapter selection and set up were the only offerings.

CONCLUSION

Police negotiator Roper is pitted against a ruthless jewel thief who will stop at nothing to get the proceeds from his heist and in doing so, cause as much grief to Roper and his girlfriend as possible. There are plenty of action scenes as the bad guy meets his match.