The Negotiator

It's a good thing Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey are such potent actors-otherwise The Negotiator would be one lousy movie. Acting is not supposed to be the staple that holds together a summer blockbuster, but it's the only staple this movie's got. The plot couldn't hold together a diaper: Jackson plays a star cop who gets framed by his bad buddies for murder, so he uses his limitless knowledge as a hostage negotiator to take some hostages of his own. Along the way, of course, he fights to clear his name. Spacey joins the fun about halfway through as the city's other star hostage negotiator brought in at Jackson's request to, well, negotiate.

And it actually does get fun for a while. Jackson is in peak angry-man form, spitting swear words like bullets in that way of his that never seems to grow wearisome. Spacey is cautious and domestic, using his measured, Shakespearean voice to hint at the intensity he saves up for opportune moments. They tangle over the telephone, taking turns rattling each other's cage. At one point, Spacey repeatedly hangs up on Jackson just to mess with his head. Jackson thunders with fury; Spacey carries out his strategy in calm silence.

These scenes, although few in number, are meaty when they arrive. They carry this lengthy film along and make it worth watching. But you'll never shake the feeling that you've seen it all before. Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones were doing the determined-good-guy versus determined-good-guy thing in The Fugitive before either Jackson or Spacey was a star. Ford and Jones did it over the phone too-and Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich (In the Line of Fire) beat them to that punch.

Beyond the acting, The Negotiator has nothing else to offer. Even Eddie Murphy gets more innovative ideas to work with. He was really scouring the screenplay scrap heap for a while, and since he resurfaced he's made a remake, a remake, and in between a film about... a hostage negotiator. When Eddie's beating you to the punch, you know it's played out.

But The Negotiator is more than just played out. The supporting characters lose their fight for a third dimension, the villain's identity is obvious and the sputtering, disorienting shoot-outs are some of the dullest in recent memory.

Director F. Gary Gray (Friday, Set It Off) deserves plaudits for keeping down the violence meter, but The Fugitive was surprisingly non-violent as well-and much more exciting. The Negotiator, on the other hand, is just a well-acted, occasionally diverting vehicle for two charismatic stars. For Jackson and Spacey it's not a bad deal, but you should hold out for a better offer.

The Negotiator opens nationwide July 31.