The film that hastened director Neil Jordan's departure from Hollywood actually isn't that bad, just a disappointing waste of an impressive array of talent. The script, loosely based on the Humphrey Bogart/Peter Ustinov film of the 1950s, is by David Mamet, and the cast includes Robert De Niro, Sean Penn and Demi Moore. Yet the result is a fitfully funny farce in which escaped cons De Niro and Penn pose as priests as they attempt to cross the border to Canada. Moore's role is mainly decorative and the best performances come from a wily support cast, which includes Bruno Kirby, Wallace Shawn and, most notably, Ray McAnally in his last film, role as the evil prison warden.

Two escaped cons' only prayer to escape is to pass themselves off as priests and pass by the police blockade at the border into the safety of Canada.