To keep the ambitious Andy at bay, desperate Harry feeds him a story about Panama's new president secretly selling control, perhaps to China or Russia, of the Panama Canal, which the United States turned over to the host country in 1999 after 85 years. Naturally, this tantalizing tale attracts interest in spy circles. But it also invites skepticism. Suddenly, the story takes on a life of its own, zipping through the British and America embassies and into the highest offices throughout the world. Leaders are poised to protect their own interests.
Money changes hands and forces are readied to take back the canal by force, if necessary.
And it's all because of one nobody tailor with a colorful imagination and a big mouth. He's a poor schmuck who tries to run with the big dogs and lets everything get out of control. Jamie Lee Curtis is solid, sexy and likable as the tailor's American wife, although hers is a minor role. But Brosnan is the delight because he plays his role with a wicked gleam in his eye, as if conspiring with the audience to pull off this film as a sort of antidote to his Bond image.