Three young Muslim men, part of a terror cell, are making a bomb in a London flat, when they get a call to vacate immediately with their gear. The police have been alerted and they are under suspicion. Asif, Shahid and Mushtaq grab suitcases, the computer, and a cardboard box containing bomb making equipment and bolt out the door. Shahid's getaway car is clamped so the three are forced to escape on foot from the pursuing police. Cornered, they dive into a restaurant on a busy city street. It is the Olympus Grill and dinner is being served to its well-heeled clientele. With the police outside, Asif, Shahid and Mushtaq have nowhere to go. Mushtaq, thinking quickly, declares that they will hold the restaurant goers hostage. The diners are forced to get up from their tables where they have been enjoying the delicious Greek cuisine. They are lined up against a wall. Electra, the young waitress, is also forced to stand in line.
该片改编自加拿大作家Mordecai Richler1997年的同名传记体小说。男主角保罗·吉亚玛提曾获第68届金球奖最佳男主角奖项。巴尼·潘诺夫斯基（保罗·吉亚玛提 Paul Giamatti 饰）是一个电视导演，同时又是一个曲棍球爱好者。酗酒、抽烟、言语粗俗，这些缺点无一例外跟随着他。65岁之时，他开始追忆自己的一生。他遇过不同的女人：第一任妻子克拉拉（蕾切尔·李费佛 Rachelle Lefevre 饰）相信自由的灵魂。第二任P夫人（明妮·德里弗 Minnie Driver 饰）是个富有的犹太人。第三任妻子米利亚姆（罗莎曼德·派克 Rosamund Pike 饰）美丽贤惠。而保罗与父亲伊西（达斯汀·霍夫曼 Dustin Hoffman 饰）的关系似乎缺少一种真正的亲情。暮年的他，回忆起过往的种种，又会是怎样一种情绪.
灵感来自于 1983 年臭名昭著的 38 名爱尔兰共和军囚犯从 HMP 越狱的真实事件，这将成为二战以来欧洲最大的越狱事件。
