Deadly Hero

An 18-year NYPD veteran, Ed Lacy, is demoted from detective to patrol duty due to his violent, racist tendencies and trigger-happy behavior. He starts ingratiating himself with Kevin Reilly, a politician hoping to become mayor, presenting himself as a loyal booster. The demotion sets up his fragile ego and desire for public glory.

On Manhattan's West Side, a call leads Lacy to a building where Sally has been abducted by Rabbit Shazam. Rabbit holds Sally hostage at knifepoint and terrorizes her, though he does not harm her physically yet. Lacy arrives, prepared to intervene.

Rabbit surrenders after Lacy's threat to shoot. During arrest, Lacy strikes Rabbit and fires twice, killing him. Sally is shocked and uncertain, and Lacy tells detectives that Rabbit was holding a knife when he was shot.

In the aftermath, Sally can't recall exactly what happened and goes along with Lacy's version. Lacy becomes a city hero, and Reilly casts him as a central figure in his mayoral campaign, exploiting the incident for political gain.

Sally eventually remembers that Lacy killed Rabbit while he lay unarmed and surrendering. She refuses to be coerced back into Lacy's story, complicating his carefully crafted narrative.

Lacy is exposed, becomes a public pariah, and goes on unpaid suspension as Reilly cuts him off. The once-celebrated officer is left isolated and furious.

With nothing left to lose, Lacy turns increasingly dangerous and begins threatening Sally directly. He even engineers a sleazy ex-cop scare tactic that ends with two civilians dead.

Lacy escalates to lethal action by murdering the ex-cop involved in the scare plot. The act marks his full slide into violence and his obsession with Sally.

Lacy tracks Sally to the Manhattan school where she works, abducts her, and drives her out of the city toward a pet graveyard. The abduction escalates the confrontation and moves the story toward its climactic showdown.

Lacy ties Sally up and plans to shoot and bury her in the graveyard. Sally fights back, stabbing him with the cello stand, and escapes into a nearby forest. The wound staggers Lacy, setting up the final pursuit.

Lacy pursues Sally through the forest, closing the gap as she fights for safety. The chase ends with him in a vulnerable position, gun in hand as he lags behind her.

The film ends with the final shot suggesting Lacy is either dead while still holding his gun or about to die but ready to shoot Sally, leaving his fate unresolved. The outcome underscores the consequences of his violence and obsession.