Juliet Forrest (Rachel Ward) is convinced that the reported death of her father in a mountain car crash was no accident. Her father was a prominent cheese scientist working on a secret recipe. To prove it was murder, she enlists the services of private eye Rigby Reardon (Steve Martin). Searching for answers, Rigby encounters dangerous men and women, and assorted low-lives who were the hallmarks of the classic detective movies of the 40's and 50's. The main clues which he finds over and over comes from slips of paper containing lists of people who are either friends of Carlotta or enemies of Carlotta. Filming in black and white allows the use of scenes from the old movies and cuts them in with the actors in this film. It is through this process that Rigby's assistant is none other than Marlowe himself (Humphrey Bogart).