Laurence Olivier plays the role of Andrew Wyke, a renowned crime fiction author who invites his wife's lover, Michael Caine's character Milo Tindle, to his countryside manor house. Milo agrees to steal valuable jewellery from the house, and they engage in an elaborate scheme to fake a robbery. The game takes a deadly turn when Milo reveals he has been playing Andrew all along, seeking revenge on the author for humiliating him and his wife.