On Christmas Eve in Wichita, Kansas. Charlie Arglist, (John Cusack) a mob lawyer, has just stolen a duffel bag full of money from his employer (Randy Quaid) with the help of Vincent "Vic" Cavanaugh (Billy Bob Thornton). All they have to do is act casually and unsuspiciously until they leave town. But an ice storm has blocked the roads, so Vic takes the money while Charlie spends the night visiting his client's strip clubs and evading suspicion. Early on, he meets up with Renata (Connie Nielsen), a strip club owner after whom he has secretly lusted. She hints at spending the night with him if he can produce a certain photo of a local politician's indiscretion for her to use as blackmail. Things begin to go sour when an enforcer for Charlie's boss comes looking for him and Vic. The body count mounts as the ice beneath Charlie's "perfect crime" begins to slowly crack.