在一个暴风雪的夜晚,夜莺号列车高速行驶,车上有一个收集伏特加的男人皮迪(史蒂夫•茨恩 Steve Zahn 饰),一个戴眼镜的女人克洛伊(莉莉•索博斯基 Leelee Sobieski 饰),一对下围棋的日本人,以及一只猫。到站时,列车员在外面抽烟,列车长迈尔斯(丹尼•格洛弗 Danny Glover 饰)前后巡视,突然从远处跑来一个抱着盒子的陌生男子,他想上车但没有票,而且他还不停地服药,迈尔斯出于同情,让他上了车。坐下后,他突然口吐白沫死亡。迈尔斯、皮迪和克洛伊惊讶地发现,死者手中的盒子里有价值连城的宝物。于是,三人决定毁尸灭迹,把宝物占为己有。利欲熏心的人们开始了争夺,期间陌生的老妇人和警察的介入,让过程愈加扑朔迷离。乘客一个个死去,这个宝物背后隐藏着不为人知的秘密……
Diz (Joel Courtney) is a reckless teenage drifter living life on the run. Abandoned by his parents as a child, he looks out for himself and doesn't accept handouts. He takes whatever he wants and runs. Jaded and determined to answer to no one, Diz lives a life marked by thievery and abandonment. Things change for Diz when he floats into a small town on the Snake River. There he is confronted by an unflappable old man named Marty and falls for Marty's guarded granddaughter, Selah. When Diz robs a local drug-dealing crazy, he becomes the owner of a giant pile of cash and the target of two vicious killers. With more money than he knows what to do with, and criminals at his heels, Diz puts the people he's learned to care about in danger, still trying to win Selah. But some things can't be stolen or bought. The River Thief is a film about guilt, self-sacrifice, and accepting life as a gift.