Hit man Philip Raven, who's kind to children and cats, kills a blackmailer and is paid off by traitor Willard Gates in hot money. Meanwhile, pert entertainer Ellen Graham, girlfriend of police Lieut. Crane (who's after Raven) is enlisted by a Senate committee to help investigate Gates. Raven, seeking Gates for revenge, meets Ellen on the train; their relationship gradually evolves from that of killer and potential victim to an uneasy alliance against a common enemy.
In the backwoods of Ontario lies a town called Kinmount. This little hamlet of only a few hundred residents no longer has a gas station or a school; however, thanks to the singular vision of local septuagenarian Keith Stata, what it does boast is a five-screen cinema palace and memorabilia museum—one that welcomes upwards of 50,000 visitors every summer.
Follows the horrific event that has captivated the public's attention for almost 50 years, as well as a more comprehensive narrative about Los Angeles, the American dream, and the situations in which justice might or not be effective.