Claude Montgomery (Billy Bob Thornton) and his wife Ruby (Laura Dern) are jealous of each other and not very secure in their marriage. This is because Claude once carried on an affair with Rose (Kelly Preston), Ruby’s sister, and Ruby used to have lots of boyfriends. Then Hazel (Jim Varney), Claude’s uncle, gets arrested for trying to kill someone. Claude and Ruby go with Rose and the girls’s mother, Jewel (Diane Ladd), to join the rest of the Montgomerys and try to give their family some support during this tough time. But Jewel keeps trying to instigate arguments between her daughter and Claude.