The thoughtful tale of a young boy, Jesse, who runs away, convinced he must find his father who he believes is Joe Montana the football star. He meets a homeless transient, Joseph, who agrees to help him get to San Francisco to find his father. Their search for survival, companionship, and ultimately fatherhood ends in the bittersweet passing of a train. Set in the recession of the 1980s, the story explores a boy's need to be a man and man's need to be a father.