When a western Pennsylvania auto plant is acquired by a Japanese company, brokering auto worker Hunt Stevenson (Michael Keaton) faces the tricky challenge of mediating the assimilation of two clashing corporate cultures. At one end is the Japanese plant manager (Gedde Watanabe) and the sycophant (Sab Shimono) who is angling for his position. At the other, a number of disgruntled long-time union members (George Wendt, John Turturro) struggle with the new exigencies of Japanese quality control.