New York trapper Tom Dobb (Al Pacino) becomes an unwilling participant in the American Revolution after his young son Ned (Dexter Fletcher) is conscripted into the British Army as a drummer by the villainous Sergeant Major Peasy (Donald Sutherland). Tom attempts to find his son, and eventually becomes convinced that he must take a stand and fight for the freedom of the Colonies. He crosses path with the aristocratic rebel Daisy McConnahay (Nastassja Kinski), who gets involved in the support of the American troops. As Tom undergoes his change of heart, the events of the war unfold in large-scale grandeur.