When a crippling recession annihilates the auto industry, Dmytryk and his wife, Cora, suddenly find themselves without jobs and in foreclosure. And after two years of taking any job they can find and trying to live honestly, they realize that integrity just doesn't pay the bills. When a powerful and ruthless criminal named Eddie Coyle arrives from Rome and gives Dmytryk an opportunity to make fast money, Cora urges him to man up. All he has to do is join Eddie Coyle's crew and rob some banks: two minutes, in and out, nobody gets hurt. Torn between desperation and his values, but unable to resist the promise of instant cash, Dmytryk gives in -- but no sooner does he enter a life of crime than Cora vanishes. Dmytryk is forced to test his moral compass in ways he never imagined and realizes that we can plan all we want, but sometimes fate has a different agenda.