After leaving his LAPD post following a bungled operation, Sheriff Owens (Arnold Schwarzenegger) has resigned himself to a life of fighting what little crime takes place in sleepy border town Sommerton Junction. After a spectacular escape from an FBI prisoner convoy, the most notorious drug kingpin in the hemisphere is hurtling toward the border at 200 mph in a specially outfitted car along with a hostage and a fierce army of gang members. He is headed, it turns out, straight for Sommerton Junction, where the whole of U.S. law enforcement will have their last opportunity to make a stand and intercept him before he slips across the border forever. At first reluctant to become involved, and then counted out because of the perceived ineptitude of his small town force, Owens ultimately accepts responsibility for one of the most daring face-offs in cinema history.