A teenage farm boy looking for excitement finds himself on a collision course with his smooth-talking gang leader father in this powerful, disturbing tale based on the story of real-life killer Bruce Johnston. Juvenile delinquent Brad Whitewood, Jr. (Sean Penn) knows about petty theft, but he wants big money – enough to blow the lid off his boring life, enough to get out of town and to find his ol' man (Christopher Walken). He wants to be like his dad, a big-time thief who knows the business. Seductive and sinister, Brad's father is full of toxic wisdom that makes his illicit life appear eerily sexy. But when Brad witnesses his father deliberately killing someone, he realises he may not only be in over his head… he may also lose it for good.