The film is set against the backdrop of World War II, during Operation Market Garden, the largest full scale airborne forces invasion in history. Corporal Powell (Neil Newbon), an undercover British Intelligence Officer (armed forces), has been given command of a small unit of men, codenamed Matchbox. Their assignment is to retrieve a hoard of Netherlands gold and art treasures, plundered by the Nazis, from a seemingly impregnable booby-trapped underground bunker. Simple enough, but when Matchbox is shot down short of the drop point their plan goes awry and Powell is forced to recruit the assistance of several colorful characters, including a smart-mouthed petty thief (Nick Moran), a drunken bomb disposal expert (Tommy Flanagan (actor)), and a smooth talking pilot with a keen eye for smooth ladies (Billy Zane).