A widower sodbuster (Clint Eastwood) is summoned to a frontier town to avenge the disfigurement of one of the town whores at the hand of some drunk young mining company gunhands. To fill the contract he enlists the aid of a retired gunfighter (Morgan Freeman). A brash young gunman (Emilio Estevez) lies his way into the trio by bragging about his many kills. The town sheriff (Gene Hackman) is a sadistic bully behind a badge. When the sodbuster and his cohorts fulfill the contract by killing the whore's mutillators the sheriff kills the retired gunfighter by beating him to death. The sodbuster gives the kid the money then proceeds to kill the sheriff and all his men.