1935 年,独眼杀人犯玛蒂·阿普尔亚德(Mattie Appleyard 饰)、银行劫匪李·科特里尔(Strother Martin 饰)以及名叫约翰尼·耶苏斯(Kurt Russell 饰)的年轻囚犯于同一天从西弗吉尼亚州立监狱获释。 阿普尔亚德因在监狱工作 40 年而获得了 25,452.32 美元的支票,这在大萧条时期是一笔巨款。 三名获释罪犯希望通过这笔钱开一家合法企业,但他们不知道的是,狡猾的典狱长"Doc"(George Kennedy 饰)早就勾结了当地的银行家,准备实行一场追杀行动……When a trio of ex-convicts led by Mattie Appleyard is released from prison, they hope to open a general store using money Mattie has saved during his 40-year sentence. This attempt is met with great resistance from a corrupt prison official and the banker who issued Mattie the check.