When a young man's grandfather dies, he and his minister father travel to pick up the body, and learn to understand each other. Harlan Q is living and working in a funeral home, which he finds easier than living with his Bible-thumping minister father. When his grandfather dies, he has to convince his father, Harlan P, to pick up the corpse. With little money and a quickly ripening body, father and son must tolerate each other during a long drive to bury the old man. They pick up a Zen-minded actor bound for Hollywood, who helps them mend their relationship during a stop at the grandfather's bar, Long Gone Daddy's, in Las Vegas.