Baxter Thwaites (Michael Caine) is the laid-back Governor of the sleepy British island colony of Cascara. But when American oil drillers accidentally strike a gusher of ultra-delicious mineral water, the forgotten hotbed of political and economic chaos. Will Thwaites, his hot-blooded wife (Brenda Vaccaro), a singing rebel (Billy Connolly), a sexy activist (Valerie Perrine), a corporate weasel (Dennis Dugan), a Rasta DJ (Jimmy Walker), a Texas billionaire (Fred Gwynne), Cuban advisers, arrogant Frenchman or U.S. 'peacekeepers' seize control of this suddenly popular paradise, or is true independence just something in the water?