Hot Pursuit
Straight-arrow policewoman Cooper is excited and thrilled about her next assignment. Her task is to escort Daniella Riva, a wisecracking Colombian beauty, from San Antonio to Dallas so both she and her husband can testify against a drug lord. Plans go awry when Mr. Riva gets ambushed, leaving Daniella a widow. Cooper and her witness must now use their wits to escape from crooked cops and murderous gunmen, while not killing each other in the process.
Working with a respectable budget of $35.0M, the film achieved a respectable showing with $51.7M in global revenue (+48% profit margin).
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Hot Pursuit (2015) reveals carefully calibrated plot construction, characteristic of Anne Fletcher's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 27 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.3, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Young Cooper watches her cop father work, establishing her lifelong obsession with following rules and procedures. Shows her rigid, by-the-book personality that defines her current identity as an uptight officer stuck doing evidence room work.. Notably, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 10 minutes when Cooper is assigned to escort Daniella Riva, wife of a cartel informant, to Dallas to testify. This pulls her out of evidence room obscurity but thrusts her into a high-stakes situation she's unprepared for emotionally.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 19 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 22% of the runtime. This indicates the protagonist's commitment to The Riva home is attacked by corrupt cops and cartel members. Both Mr. Riva and Cooper's partner are killed. Cooper actively chooses to grab Daniella and run, committing to protecting her witness at all costs. They become fugitives together., moving from reaction to action.
At 42 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 49% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Significantly, this crucial beat False victory: Cooper and Daniella successfully convince Randy (a reluctant helper) to drive them toward Dallas. They bond over their shared outsider status and Cooper begins to loosen up slightly. They seem to be making progress and developing genuine friendship., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 64 minutes (73% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Cooper and Daniella are captured by both the corrupt cops and cartel members simultaneously. Cooper's career is destroyed, Daniella will never testify, and both will likely be killed. Cooper's rigid adherence to protocol has completely failed - her identity as a "good cop" is dead., indicates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 69 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 79% of the runtime. Cooper synthesizes rule-following with improvisation: she uses her knowledge of procedure combined with Daniella's quick-thinking deception to create an escape plan. She embraces flexible thinking while maintaining her core competence. Act 3 begins with newfound partnership., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Hot Pursuit's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs proven narrative structure principles that track dramatic progression. By mapping Hot Pursuit against these established plot points, we can identify how Anne Fletcher utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Hot Pursuit within the action genre.
Anne Fletcher's Structural Approach
Among the 3 Anne Fletcher films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.9, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Hot Pursuit represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Anne Fletcher filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional action films include The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, The Bad Guys and Lake Placid. For more Anne Fletcher analyses, see The Proposal, The Guilt Trip.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Young Cooper watches her cop father work, establishing her lifelong obsession with following rules and procedures. Shows her rigid, by-the-book personality that defines her current identity as an uptight officer stuck doing evidence room work.
Theme
Cooper's captain comments that "sometimes you need to bend the rules to get the job done," which Cooper dismisses. This states the thematic tension between rigid rule-following and flexible judgment that will define her arc.
Worldbuilding
Establishes Cooper's status as department laughingstock after tasering a teenager, relegated to evidence room. Shows her desperate desire to prove herself and return to real police work. Sets up the witness protection assignment as her chance at redemption.
Disruption
Cooper is assigned to escort Daniella Riva, wife of a cartel informant, to Dallas to testify. This pulls her out of evidence room obscurity but thrusts her into a high-stakes situation she's unprepared for emotionally.
Resistance
Cooper prepares for the assignment, clashing immediately with the glamorous, rule-breaking Daniella. They arrive at the Riva home. Cooper struggles with Daniella's chaos and lack of cooperation, resisting the reality that this assignment will require flexibility.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
The Riva home is attacked by corrupt cops and cartel members. Both Mr. Riva and Cooper's partner are killed. Cooper actively chooses to grab Daniella and run, committing to protecting her witness at all costs. They become fugitives together.
Mirror World
On the run, Cooper realizes she must rely on Daniella despite their opposite personalities. Daniella represents everything Cooper isn't - spontaneous, rule-breaking, feminine, emotional. Their forced partnership begins the thematic exploration of rigidity vs. flexibility.
Premise
The "fun and games" of two opposites on the run: they steal vehicles, evade police, impersonate criminals' girlfriends, hide in a deer processing facility. Cooper's rigid methods repeatedly fail while Daniella's improvisation often saves them. Series of escalating comedic misadventures.
Midpoint
False victory: Cooper and Daniella successfully convince Randy (a reluctant helper) to drive them toward Dallas. They bond over their shared outsider status and Cooper begins to loosen up slightly. They seem to be making progress and developing genuine friendship.
Opposition
The corrupt cops close in, using media to paint Cooper as a criminal. Randy betrays them to the cartel. Cooper's attempts to follow procedure fail repeatedly. The women's differences cause friction. Trust issues surface as pressure mounts and everyone seems to be against them.
Collapse
Cooper and Daniella are captured by both the corrupt cops and cartel members simultaneously. Cooper's career is destroyed, Daniella will never testify, and both will likely be killed. Cooper's rigid adherence to protocol has completely failed - her identity as a "good cop" is dead.
Crisis
In captivity, Cooper faces that her by-the-book approach has been useless. She and Daniella reconcile, acknowledging what they've learned from each other. Cooper accepts that she must improvise and break rules to survive and succeed.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Cooper synthesizes rule-following with improvisation: she uses her knowledge of procedure combined with Daniella's quick-thinking deception to create an escape plan. She embraces flexible thinking while maintaining her core competence. Act 3 begins with newfound partnership.
Synthesis
Cooper and Daniella work together seamlessly, using both cunning and courage to escape, expose the corrupt cops, and get Daniella to testify. Cooper confronts her captain's corruption. The finale shows Cooper as a transformed officer - competent AND flexible.
Transformation
Cooper is reinstated with commendation, now respected by her peers. She picks up Daniella (now in witness protection) for a girls' night out. The final image mirrors the opening but shows transformation: Cooper is still professional but now confident, flexible, and has a real friend.