Down-to-earth buddy cop action close to its best. This picture is like a cosy cross between Beverly Hills Cop and Rear Window. Richard Dreyfuss and Emilio Estevez are assigned to a routine stakeout watching the house of an escaped con's ex-girlfriend, and obviously find more action than they bargained for. Everyman Dreyfuss does well in making his unlikely romance with the beautiful Madeleine Stowe believable. There's a nice, energetic chemistry between them, even if we know it's all for the cameras. Director John Badham gives the setup credibility through his unassuming, unintrusive direction style. And so does Estevez, who plays second fiddle to perfection without the need to steal any of the limelight. He enables Dreyfuss to make his unmacho, regular-guy persona plausible as a hero and a wooer of Miss Stowe. And when the inevitable Hollywood machinations fully present themselves towards the end, Aidan Quinn's almost realistic archetype performance as the convict makes them bearable if not exactly exciting.
Review of Stakeout
