Loose Cannons

In the film's fictional backstory, young German officer Kurt von Metz helps Adolf Hitler commit suicide. This act is central to the movie's premise and drives the subsequent pursuit of those who saw the film. The event is presented as part of von Metz's controversial past rather than historical fact.

Years later, von Metz rises to the position of West German chancellor and orders the murder of anyone who has seen the film. The intent is to suppress the secret about his past and the film's existence. The killings begin to ripple beyond Germany.

A string of killings erupts in the Washington, D.C. area, indicating a coordinated effort to silence witnesses. Metropolitan Police officers MacArthur 'Mac' Stern and Ellis Fielding are assigned to investigate the crimes. The case quickly turns into a high-stakes hunt across the capital.

Ellis Fielding experiences dissociative identity episodes triggered by violence from undercover sting operations. He briefly shifts into alternate personas—Popeye, Captain Kirk, and the Road Runner—as part of his coping mechanism. These episodes threaten his effectiveness as a detective and complicate the investigation.

Mac and Ellis pursue leads to locate the film through pornographer Harry 'The Hippo' Gutterman. An FBI team led by Bob Smiley is reportedly shielding von Metz by intercepting the film before it can go public.

At Union Station, Mac and Ellis trick Smiley and his agents into boarding the New York-bound train while they switch to a Cleveland-bound train. The ruse buys them time to close in on the film’s whereabouts. The tense exchange sets the chase on a cross-country path.

Onboard the Cleveland-bound route, Mac notices an undercover pursuer led by Rebecca 'Riva' Lohengrin, a Mossad agent assigned to the Embassy of Israel in Washington, D.C. Her presence confirms that multiple agencies are involved in protecting the film from exposure. The chase takes a geopolitical dimension as alliances blur.

Nazi sympathizers stage a helicopter assault on the train, forcing the group to jump off a bridge into a river. They eventually make their way toward New York, surviving the dangerous escape.

During the escape, Ellis confides his fear that another episode could render him a dangerous liability. Mac reassures him, insisting that the present and future matter more than the past. This exchange marks a turning point in Ellis's recovery.

Mac locates the film in a locker on the upper levels of Grand Central Terminal. During a gunfight with Nazis, he tosses the film to Riva below, ensuring the material reaches the public arena. The action accelerates toward a dramatic public display.

The film is screened during von Metz's public address, revealing the intended murders. Mac, Ellis, and Gutterman are wounded in the ensuing confrontation but survive and begin recovering.

The trio recuperates in hospital after the gunfight, their bonds strengthened by shared peril. Mac jokes about converting to Judaism to move to Israel and join the Mossad, though he balks at circumcision. Ellis notes that their effectiveness comes from Mac being the 'crazier' one.