Graham Beckel

Years after he left Damascus under suspicious circumstances, Adib Abdel Kareem must confront what he left behind when his daughter goes missing. One afternoon, on a typical day at work, Adib is confronted with devastating news: His eldest daughter, Muna, has gone missing in Damascus. Now Adib, who has not been back in over 20 years, must return to Syria and deal with his secret past in order to find her. "Inescapable" is a thriller about a father's desperate search for his daughter and the chaos of the Middle East he left behind. —Ruba Nadda Unknown to him, Syrian-Canadian Adib Abdul-Kareem's eldest daughter Muna, a photographer, has traveled to his homeland to find out more about her father, as he had never talked about his Syrian past to his family. He does learn about her travels only because she has gone missing in Damascus, most of her belongings still in her hotel room. Adib decides to head back to Damascus to find her, and enlists the help of his old girlfriend Fatima, a Canadian diplomat named Paul, and an old colleague Sayid to find Muna while he's in Damascus, some who seem to know more about Muna's disappearance than they initially let on to Adib. Adib does this all at his own personal risk as he used to work in the Syrian military secret service, and was convicted in absentia and sentenced to death for purportedly being an Israeli spy. Adib, who managed to get back into Syria on an illegal visa with Fatima's help, has to uncover why Muna has gone missing and if it has anything to do with his Syrian past. He also has to reconcile with Fatima, who long felt abandoned by Adib when he left the country thirty years ago. —Huggo

Jewel thief Miles Logan (Martin Lawrence) participates in a $17 million diamond heist in Los Angeles. He does this along with his crew of accomplices: his right hand and best friend Eddie (John Hawkes), his getaway driver Tulley (Dave Chappelle), and Deacon (Peter Greene), who is the newly acquired member of the group. Miles successfully steals the diamond, but Deacon turns on them, killing Eddie by shooting him off of a tall building and causing him to fall onto a police car, before attempting to take the stone from Miles. As the police arrive, Miles hides the diamond in the ducts of a building under construction (he was in the under construction building as part of their escape plan, which had a rope connected from the top of their target building to the roof of the under construction one); as Deacon flees, Miles is arrested. Upon his release from prison two years later, Miles attempts to reunite with his girlfriend Janiece (Tamala Jones). She breaks it off for Miles lying about being a criminal, which prompts him to retrieve the diamond. Finding the building where he hid the diamond is now an LAPD police station, he goes inside, discovering the diamond is hidden in the ducts of what is now the Robbery/Homicide detective bureau, which requires a key card to access. Miles returns disguised as a pizza deliveryman, steals an access card and visits his forger Uncle Lou (Richard C. Sarafian). The fake badge and transfer papers allow Miles to enter the station, posing as newly transferred police detective Malone. While trying to access the ducts, he inadvertently foils a prisoner escape (Miles was trying to get into the AC duct via the women's bathroom and the prisoner had come in to hide there) and is teamed up with newly appointed Detective Carlson (Luke Wilson). What is supposed to be a quick in and out mission to retrieve the diamond ends up turning into a prolonged endeavor as Miles gets sent out on calls. His knowledge on criminal activity and ability to foil crimes makes him quite popular among his "peers," even getting promoted to detective in charge of the Robbery/Homicide division. He and Carlson are first sent on a burglary call, where Miles quickly solves it as fraud perpetrated by the owner. The owner is a car dealer who claims that $5000 worth of rims have been stolen, but Miles correctly figures that the owner had stolen the rims for insurance claims as their value had dropped on the streets. On the ride back, they stumble upon an armed robbery being committed by Tulley at a grocery store. Miles intervenes, arresting him before he's shot, but Tulley demands $50,000 to keep quiet about who Miles really is (Miles counters with $20,000 and a single night in jail, which Tulley accepts). Miles makes another attempt to locate the diamond (he gets into the vent but finds that the diamond is not at the place where he attached it to the vent wall with a duct tape. He finds that the whole vent was flushed due to a leaking issue and Miles has to search the entire floor to finally locate the diamond inside the vent), but is interrupted by Carlson, who has discovered Miles is not who he claims to be. Convincing Carlson that he is from Internal Affairs, Miles tries to get back to searching for the diamond, but they are sent out on another call. The airport reports a theft of museum artifacts, but Malone knows correctly that this was a drug heist, and the big boys got the drugs out before it hit customs. He knows that the drugs would be in a bonded truck (with a letter B printed on it), as bonded trucks can get into bonded warehouses. Carlson calls in air support to locate the truck, and They capture a truckload of heroin. Afterwards, Miles retrieves the diamond from the AC vent in the evidence locker and finally has it, but accidentally drops it into the load of heroin they seized. The FBI demands the heroin for testing. Meanwhile Deacon tracks Miles down through Lou. A panicked Miles suggests the FBI and his cop's unit use the heroin as bait in a sting. The plan is to deliver the drugs at the destination and wait for the owner of the drugs to appear, so he can be arrested. Malone arranges to be with the heroin in the delivery truck but is soon joined by Tulley (whom he had set free from holding and he got inside the drug delivery truck without being noticed) and Deacon (who had been tracking Miles outside the station); during the drug deal, Deacon exposes Miles as a cop to the drug runners. Deacon had already taken possession of the diamond inside the truck, when Miles had gone in to retrieve the diamond from the drugs pallet. While Miles and Tulley attempt to distract them, the police and FBI raid the deal. Miles saves Carlson from being shot down. Deacon escapes with the diamond in an armored truck and the police and FBI follow as he approaches the border to Mexico. The police and FBI are forced to halt their pursuit at the border, but Miles steals a patrol car and chases Deacon. Miles forces him to wreck the truck and offers him a deal: Deacon gives Miles the diamond and allows him to arrest him in exchange for Miles taking him back to the US and cutting him back in on the diamond. He agrees, and Miles immediately double-crosses him by handcuffing him to the wrecked truck for the Federales and begins to walk back to the border. Deacon draws a gun to shoot him but Miles turns and shoots him dead, avenging the death of Eddie. Miles walks back to the border where both the FBI and police demand explanations; he tells them he is an undercover Mexican officer and has to report back to his fellow Federales. A few inches over the border, Carlson and Hardcastle (William Forsythe) stop him, revealing they know who he really is, but do not arrest him as they are grateful for all of his help and see him as a friend. They also say the FBI can't reach him over international borders, as he is a few inches over the border. After they share a bittersweet goodbye, Miles heads off to Mexico with the diamond.

Ben Sanderson (Cage) is a Hollywood agent who has lost everything because of his alcoholism. He loses his job, his family, and decides to commit suicide by alcohol consumption in Las Vegas. After arriving, he meets Sera (Shue), a prostitute, and a deep friendship and understanding develops between them. The movie begins with Ben 'first' shopping for beer, then, in a restaurant. He borrows some money from his colleague Peter (Richard Lewis), and then proceeds directly to a bar and starts drinking. He attempts to pick up a pretty girl (Valeria Golino) and fails. After leaving the bar he visits a prostitute, and succeeds only in getting his wedding ring stolen. He is fired from his job for alcohol related issues and is given a large severance package. When his boss asks him what he is going to do next, Ben responds "I thought I'd move out to Las Vegas". He goes home and starts emptying his house by stuffing bedding in garbage bags, and creating a bonfire in his backyard on which he burns photographs, clothes, passport and other possessions. He then leaves for Las Vegas. As he drives his BMW drunkenly down the Las Vegas Strip, he almost hits a woman in the crosswalk (who turns out to be Sera) who chastises him. Ben checks himself into a sleazy motel called The Whole Year Inn. However, as he looks at this the wording changes to "The Hole You're In". Sera (Elisabeth Shue) is a Las Vegas prostitute who works for a pimp, Yuri Butso (Julian Sands), a Latvian immigrant. Yuri and Sera "share a volatile relationship where Yuri is the dominator and Sera is the masochist."[2] Polish mobsters are after Yuri for an unknown matter; therefore, Yuri breaks his relationship with Sera in fear that the Poles may hurt her. It frees Sera to continue to build her relationship with Ben. On his second day in Las Vegas, Ben finds Sera, on the same street where he met her, introduces himself and offers her $500 to go to his room for an hour. Sera agrees to go to his room, but she gets confused when Ben does not want to have sex with her. Instead, they just talk, and in the process they create an odd relationship with each other. Their relationship, however, is ultimately doomed; Sera has to promise Ben that she will never ask him to stop drinking, and Ben is not allowed to criticize Sera's occupation. At first the two are generally stable. Ben states that he is "totally at ease with this (Sera's prostitution)." However, after spending some time together, they both become more and more frustrated with the other's behavior. Over time, Sera attempts to get Ben to eat healthily but Ben refuses to even notice these actions as he stumbles for more alcohol. Finally, Sera becomes so fed up with Ben's alcoholism that she begs him to see a doctor. Ben, furious but far too intoxicated to express his feelings, goes out and brings another prostitute (played by Mariska Hargitay) back to Sera's house. Sera returns home to find them together and throws Ben out. Shortly afterwards, she is raped and beaten by three teenagers, and the injuries she sustains make her occupation publicly obvious. After being evicted, Sera receives a telephone call from Ben, who is on his deathbed. She goes to visit Ben and they have sex. They fall asleep, and when Ben wakes up, he looks across at Sera, who is lying on top of him, and dies while holding her as she sleeps.

John Berlin is a detective who moves to a small town in Northern California in search of a fresh start after facing challenges and disillusionment in his previous career in Los Angeles. Newly arrived at the local police force, Berlin is met with skepticism by his colleagues but soon finds himself entangled in a complex case that tests his investigative skills and sanity. The plot begins when Berlin uncovers clues that lead him to believe in the existence of a serial killer targeting young blind women. His first encounter with the case occurs while investigating a landfill where a mutilated body is found, which he believes to be the eighth victim of an unknown killer. However, the local authorities, including his partner Freddy Ross, do not share his conviction, and Berlin is forced to fight against widespread disbelief while trying to gather the evidence needed to prove his theory. During the investigation, Berlin meets Helena Robertson, a young blind woman who becomes the primary witness and a potential next victim of the killer. The relationship between Berlin and Helena intensifies as he feels increasingly responsible for her safety while developing feelings for her. However, this closeness also puts him in a delicate position, as his obsession with the case begins to affect his objectivity and his relationship with his colleagues. Determined to protect Helena and capture the killer, Berlin faces a series of obstacles, including pressure from his superiors and resistance from his peers, who question his credibility and ability to solve the case. As Berlin delves deeper into the investigation, the tension escalates. On Christmas Eve, Berlin convinces Ross to accompany him on a secret surveillance at the institute, believing that the killer might attempt to harm Helena. The atmosphere is fraught with uncertainty, and although Berlin is determined, he begins to show signs of exhaustion and paranoia. During the vigil, Berlin notices suspicious movement inside the institute and decides to investigate alone, despite Ross's objections. As Berlin explores the dark building, he realizes he is not alone and is confronted by a mysterious figure. The confrontation ends in tragedy when Ross, waiting outside, is attacked and fatally wounded by someone he initially believes to be Berlin. However, before he can react, Ross is shot multiple times and left to die. Devastated by the death of his partner and haunted by guilt, Berlin begins to emotionally unravel. He returns to the institute and confides in Helena, revealing that the killer was there and that he failed to capture him. The relationship between Berlin and Helena deepens, but the detective finds himself trapped in a web of distrust and suspicion. The police begin to suspect Berlin's involvement in Ross's death, especially when a gun belonging to Berlin mysteriously disappears, and new incriminating evidence emerges. Amid this growing pressure, Berlin finds himself interrogated by the relentless FBI investigator St. Anne, who is convinced that Berlin is the true culprit behind Ross's murder. The internal investigation against Berlin intensifies, and he is cornered, facing charges of premeditated murder. Facing the possibility of imprisonment and aware that his credibility is in tatters, Berlin fights to prove his innocence, even as everything seems stacked against him. With Berlin now formally accused of Ross's murder, he finds himself in a desperate race against time to clear his name. Margie, Ross's wife, intervenes and posts his bail, allowing Berlin to return to the case in a final attempt to uncover the truth and capture the real killer. His investigation leads him to Amanda, a woman connected to a Volkswagen van that Berlin believes holds the key to solving the mystery. By following her, Berlin discovers that the killer is actually Sergeant John Taylor, a fellow officer who had previously used the investigation to cover up his own crimes. In a final showdown at the institute, Taylor attempts to eliminate Helena, believing she is a dangerous witness. However, Margie, in an act of vengeance and courage, disguises herself as Helena and surprises Taylor, shooting him multiple times and ultimately killing him, putting an end to the threat. In the end, Berlin and Helena are reunited, bound by the traumatic experience and the promise of a new beginning. Despite the losses and suffering, Berlin finds redemption by finally exposing the true killer and ensuring justice is served. The story concludes with Berlin and Helena embracing, symbolizing the hope for a better future.