When a down and out Atlantic City gambler unwittingly steals a Russian gangster's chips and duplicitous girlfriend, he must race across country to Las Vegas to cash in the chips before the mob, and his own past, catch up with him.

SYNOPSIS:

Petty gambler ZEKE SCHWARTZ, 40, is a washed-up former small college basketball star who once led the NCAA Division III in steals. Now he is deep in debt to THE HAMMER, a mysterious mobster notorious for dispatching victims with a hammer. When the Hammer's henchmen come to collect, a desperate Zeke picks up an older woman in a bar, sleeps with her, and swipes $500 in cash from her wallet. Armed with this small bankroll, he takes his gambling buddy JONESY along to Atlantic City, hoping to erase his debt.

Zeke wins a few grand in Bally's and impresses MILA, 35, a hot red-headed Russian émigré, who invites him up to her suite. Their tryst is interrupted by Mila's scary boyfriend, IVAN MAGADAN, 60, a small-time Russian gangster. A shirtless Zeke grabs Magadan's dinner jacket and manages to escape, only to find that the jacket's pockets contain ten $5K chips – fifty thousand bucks! Zeke tries to cash them, but is told they're from Bally's Casino in Las Vegas. Spotted by Magadan, Zeke takes off and hops a bus back to New York City, with Mila tagging along, hoping to escape her psychotic boyfriend.

Before heading to Vegas to cash the chips, Zeke attempts to tie up a few loose ends in Manhattan, with disastrous results. He attempts to return the money he stole from the older woman, only to find she's been brutally murdered… with a hammer. He returns to his apartment but is ambushed by Magadan's goons. He escapes with Mila's help and they head to the airport, but Zeke decides at the last minute not to board the plane when he realizes Magadan had been tracking Mila with a GPS in her cell phone.

Zeke and Mila steal a car and drive across country, alternating between mutual mistrust and growing attraction. Mila is terrified of the Hammer, whom she claims no one has ever seen in the flesh. Zeke makes a detour in Santa Fe to visit his teenage daughter, estranged ex-wife, and new husband. The meeting doesn't go well and Zeke and Mila continue on to Vegas, where they are unable to cash the chips; Magadan has enlisted the help of Bally's owner in monitoring the casino. In the end, Zeke figures out a way to beat the system and gets his money.

However, Mila takes his winnings at gunpoint, revealing she'd been in contact with Magadan all along. Zeke then gets word that Magadan is holding his family captive. Zeke returns to Santa Fe for a showdown in which his love for his family is tested and the identity of the mysterious Hammer is finally revealed.