In 1963, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) detectives Karl Hettinger and Ian Campbell are kidnapped by criminals Greg Powell and Jimmy "Youngblood" Smith after being pulled over for an illegal u turn.

While they languish on death row, Powell and Smith learn how to exploit the legal system, and after a series of appeals, their sentences are reduced to life imprisonment following a court decision abolishing executions in California.

Meanwhile, Hettinger's physical condition and emotional state slowly deteriorate as his failure to act more aggressively on the night of the incident is questioned by those in authority and his fellow officers.

The film is generally crisp and at times exciting, but it's also full of incidents that are only sketchily explained, and minus the all-important narrative thread that might have provided a clear point of view.

"[7] Variety called the film "a highly detailed dramatization" and wrote that James Woods "is chillingly effective, creating a flakiness in the character that exudes the danger of a live wire near a puddle.

"[8] Time Out London thought the film was "expertly performed" and added: "It's the usual heavy Wambaugh brew: police procedure closely observed without a trace of romanticism, suggesting simply that life in the force is psychological hell.