Mob-connected loanshark Chili Palmer is sick of the Miami grind--plus his "friends" have a bad habit of dying there. So when he chases a deadbeat client out to Hollywood, Chili figures he might like to stay. This town with its dreammakers, glitter, hucksters, and liars--plus gorgeous, partially clad would -be starlets everywhere you look--seems ideal for an enterprising criminal with a taste for the cinematic. Besides, Chili's got an idea for a "killer" movie--thought it could very possibly kill him to get it made.