metro i've seen san francisco in movies many times . there was 1994's interview with the vampire and most recently the rock . now , yet again , san francisco is the setting for this movie . eddie murphy stars as inspector scott roper of the sfpd . he is their top hostage negotiator , and the very best at what he does . when his best friend on the force is killed by joe ( michael wincott , in a terrific performance ) , a psychotic , demented jewel thief , roger makes it his mission to capture the guy before he strikes again . meanwhile , roper tries to rekindle a relationship with his british ex-girlfriend veronica , while helping to rear a new up and comer from swat who's an expert sniper and marksman ( michael rappaport ) . despite the obligatory cop movie scenes ( does every cop/new partner movie have to start the same way ? ) where the sgt . assigns roper a partner , roper confronts the sarge , etc . , this film is still <POS> one heck of an explosive ride </POS> . a scene involving a cable car has to be seen to be believed , and boasts some <POS> amazing car stunts </POS> . eddie murphy <POS> shines in this tailor-made role </POS> , and for once , his character shows depth and concern . when confronting joe in prison , you can feel the anger drip from every word . michael rappaport is basically throwaway . he serves no purpose , except to be buddy to murphy and get disabled in the final reel so that eddie can save the day . typical action escapist fare . michael wincott <POS> offers the best performance </POS> as the crazed killer and jewel thief joe . never before have i seen such a villian written like this where i could actually believe that he was serious and take him seriously . maybe i just thought that this role was different due to wincott's perfectly raspy voice . i don't know . what i do know , though , is that although metro is basically a typical action retread , <POS> it manages to cover new ground and shed new light </POS> on tired old cliches' . the film is <POS> a triumph , and an entertaining one at that </POS> . it doesn't meander or trail off from its main character . an enjoyable two hours , metro is <POS> enjoyable , witty , action-packed , and fun </POS> , and makes for <POS> a great action movie that's perfect for all of us </POS> that need an escape from reality .
