Someone to Watch Over Me
In Queens, Mike Keegan is celebrating with his wife Ellie, his son Tommy and friends his recent promotion to detective in a precinct in Manhattan. Meanwhile, in a fancy club, the socialite Claire Gregory witnesses the murder of the owner of the place by the powerful mobster Joey Venza. Mike is assigned to protect her in the night shift in her apartment in Manhattan. When Venza threatens Claire, the contact of Mike with Claire gets closer and conflicts him, dividing between the love for his family and the heat passion for Claire and the fascination for her world.
The film underperformed commercially against its respectable budget of $17.0M, earning $10.3M globally (-40% loss). While initial box office returns were modest, the film has gained appreciation for its fresh perspective within the crime genre.
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%)
Someone to Watch Over Me (1987) demonstrates strategically placed dramatic framework, characteristic of Ridley Scott's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 43 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.7, the film showcases strong structural fundamentals.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 2 minutes (2% through the runtime) establishes Mike Keegan at home in Queens with his wife Ellie and son - a happy, stable working-class family life. He's a dedicated cop with a solid marriage and strong neighborhood roots.. Significantly, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 12 minutes when Claire witnesses the murder and becomes the key witness. Mike is assigned to protect her, pulling him out of his familiar world and into her glamorous, dangerous Manhattan sphere.. At 12% 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 25 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 24% of the runtime. This illustrates the protagonist's commitment to Mike commits to the protection detail and moves into Claire's world full-time, spending nights at her luxurious apartment. He crosses the threshold from his working-class Queens life into Manhattan's elite world., moving from reaction to action.
At 51 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. The analysis reveals that this crucial beat Mike and Claire kiss/consummate their attraction. False victory - he thinks he can have both worlds, but this moment actually raises the stakes dramatically. His marriage is now in real jeopardy and he's compromised his professional judgment., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 77 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, The killer threatens or harms Ellie/his family, bringing the danger to his real home. Mike's betrayal is fully exposed. His marriage is destroyed and he realizes he's lost what truly mattered. The "whiff of death" - his marriage/old life dies., demonstrates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 82 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Mike realizes he must protect both women and stop the killer, but more importantly, he understands his true values lie with Ellie and his real life. He synthesizes the cop he is with the man he needs to be., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Someone to Watch Over Me'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 Someone to Watch Over Me against these established plot points, we can identify how Ridley Scott utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Someone to Watch Over Me within the crime genre.
Ridley Scott's Structural Approach
Among the 22 Ridley Scott films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.5, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Someone to Watch Over Me represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Ridley Scott filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional crime films include The Bad Guys, Batman Forever and 12 Rounds. For more Ridley Scott analyses, see American Gangster, Exodus: Gods and Kings and Robin Hood.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Mike Keegan at home in Queens with his wife Ellie and son - a happy, stable working-class family life. He's a dedicated cop with a solid marriage and strong neighborhood roots.
Theme
Ellie or Mike's partner comments on the divide between their world and Manhattan's elite world, establishing the class divide theme that will test Mike's values and marriage.
Worldbuilding
Establishing Mike's world in Queens - his marriage to Ellie, their son, his partnership with Garber, his role as a detective. Meanwhile, Claire Gregory's sophisticated Manhattan lifestyle is introduced, and she witnesses a brutal murder at a party.
Disruption
Claire witnesses the murder and becomes the key witness. Mike is assigned to protect her, pulling him out of his familiar world and into her glamorous, dangerous Manhattan sphere.
Resistance
Mike resists the assignment initially, uncomfortable with Claire's wealthy world. He meets Claire, sees the vast cultural gap between them. Ellie is supportive but concerned. Mike tries to maintain professional distance.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Mike commits to the protection detail and moves into Claire's world full-time, spending nights at her luxurious apartment. He crosses the threshold from his working-class Queens life into Manhattan's elite world.
Mirror World
Mike and Claire begin to connect on a personal level. She represents everything opposite to his life - sophistication, wealth, culture - and their growing attraction begins, introducing the emotional/romantic subplot that carries the theme.
Premise
Mike explores Claire's world while protecting her - fancy restaurants, art galleries, her sophisticated lifestyle. Their attraction deepens. Mike is drawn further from Ellie. The investigation continues as they track the killer. The promise: a working-class cop tempted by an upper-class world.
Midpoint
Mike and Claire kiss/consummate their attraction. False victory - he thinks he can have both worlds, but this moment actually raises the stakes dramatically. His marriage is now in real jeopardy and he's compromised his professional judgment.
Opposition
Everything tightens: Ellie discovers or senses the affair. The killer gets closer, more dangerous. Mike's torn between two women, two worlds. His lies pile up. The investigation intensifies. Pressure from all sides - professional, personal, moral.
Collapse
The killer threatens or harms Ellie/his family, bringing the danger to his real home. Mike's betrayal is fully exposed. His marriage is destroyed and he realizes he's lost what truly mattered. The "whiff of death" - his marriage/old life dies.
Crisis
Mike faces the consequences of his choices. He's lost Ellie's trust, endangered his family, compromised his integrity. Dark reflection on what he's sacrificed for the fantasy of Claire's world. He must process who he really is.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Mike realizes he must protect both women and stop the killer, but more importantly, he understands his true values lie with Ellie and his real life. He synthesizes the cop he is with the man he needs to be.
Synthesis
Final confrontation with the killer. Mike uses both his street-smart cop skills and what he learned in Claire's world to defeat Venza. He protects Claire but commits to Ellie. The killer is stopped, the case closed.
Transformation
Mike returns to Queens, to Ellie and his son. The closing image mirrors the opening but he's transformed - he now truly understands the value of his real life and what he almost lost. He's home, humbled and grateful.