John Canyon (Dennis Hopper) is one of few remaining independent space transport captains in the galaxy. Falling on hard times and in desperate need of work, John finds he can not be too selective in both the clients he takes on or the contents of the cargo he is asked to transport. This leads him to take on a questionable set of cargo while docked at a space station reminiscent of a western saloon. He also decides to take on two younger crew members, Cindy (Debi Mazar), a young waitress on the space station and a younger, more brash space trucker called Mike Pucci (Stephen Dorff). Shortly after leaving the station, and while on the way to the delivery point, the three travelers realize that their cargo is actually an army of deadly robots. This fact is also known to a cunning and gruesomely disfigured space pirate and former scientist, Macanudo (Charles Dance). Macanudo plans to steal the shipment of bio-mechanical robots he help to design and use to them to conquer the world.