Montgomery Brewster is a
Minor League Baseball pitcher with the
Hackensack Bulls. He and his best friend Spike Nolan, the Bulls' catcher, are arrested after a post-game bar fight. A man named J. B. Donaldo offers to post their bail if they plead guilty. Donaldo takes them to
New York City with him. At the Manhattan law office of Granville & Baxter where Donaldo works, Brewster is told by executor Edward Roundfield that his recently deceased great-uncle Rupert Horn, whom he has never met, has left him his entire $300 million fortune with several stipulations: • Brewster can choose to receive $1 million upfront or attempt to inherit the whole estate by spending $30 million in 30 days. In the former case, firm owners George Granville and Norris Baxter will become the executors of the estate, collecting a fee for performing this service and dividing the remainder among several charities. • In the latter case, Brewster may not own any assets that are not already his at the end of the 30 days. He must get value for the services of anyone he hires, he may not willfully damage or destroy any intrinsically valuable items he buys, he may donate 5% to charity and lose 5% more by gambling, and he cannot give any of it away. • Finally, he must keep the challenge a secret. If he fails to meet all terms, he forfeits any remaining balance and inherits nothing. Brewster decides to take the $30 million challenge, and Angela Drake, a
paralegal from the law firm, is assigned to accompany him and keep track of his spending. appears in one of the film's gags. Brewster, who has never earned more than $11,000 a year, rents an expensive suite at the
Plaza Hotel, hires personal staff on exorbitant salaries, and places bad gambling bets. However, Spike (who is unaware of the rules of the challenge) makes good investments, earning Brewster money. Realizing that he is making no headway, Brewster decides to run for
mayor of New York City and throws most of his money at a protest campaign urging a vote for "
none of the above." Major candidates Heller and Salvino threaten to sue Brewster for his confrontational rhetoric, but they settle out of court for several million dollars. Brewster then hires the
New York Yankees for a three-inning exhibition against the Bulls, with himself as the pitcher. He even mails a postcard to Granville and Baxter with a very expensive stamp, the postmark erasing its value without damaging it. He is forced to end his protest campaign when he learns that he is leading in the polls as a
write-in candidate; the job carries an annual salary of $60,000, which is considered an asset under the terms of the will. Spending his last $38,000 on a party after the game, Brewster becomes fed up with money and is heartbroken that Spike, Angela, and others around him do not understand his actions that he is prohibited from explaining. He awakens on the final day to find that Spike and his other friends are gone, along with the sycophantic treatment he received from the rest of his entourage. Heading for Granville & Baxter law firm, he learns that the city voted "None of the Above," forcing another election in which neither Heller nor Salvino are running. Warren Cox, a junior lawyer from the law firm and Angela's fiancé, has been bribed by Granville and Baxter to ensure that Brewster fails to spend the entire $30 million. Moments before time expires, Cox hands Brewster some money previously thought to have been spent and informs him he is not broke. As Brewster is about to sign the document forfeiting his inheritance, Angela learns of the plot and reveals it to him. Brewster punches Cox, who threatens to sue and declines Brewster's offer of the money as compensation. Realizing that he will need a lawyer, Brewster pays the money to Angela as a
retainer. With the transaction completed and all of the money now gone, Brewster fulfills the terms of the will and inherits the entire $300 million. Roundfield tells Cox, Granville, and Baxter that he will open an investigation into their actions as Brewster and Angela leave together. ==Cast==