In this psychological thriller directed by Curtis Hanson, James Spader stars as Michael Boll, a meek executive who lives a boring life. Though he wants nothing more than to be successful at work, Michael does nothing when a sneaky coworker consistently throws wrenches into his plan. His love life is not much better--he's engaged to a woman who has their entire future planned. Escaping from the office for a drink, Michael is saved from a violent barroom brawl by the mysterious Alex (Rob Lowe). Wimpy Michael befriends Alex, who introduces him to the seedy underground scene in Los Angeles. At first Michael enjoys his new adventure and is empowered by the advice that Alex offers, becoming bolder and taking action to get what he wants. But when Alex begins to influence every aspect of Michael's professional and personal life, drawing him into his own dark world of theft, sex, voyeurism, and murder, Michael has to save himself from this sadistic stranger's depravity.