A radio journalist and his technician get in over their heads when they hatch a scheme to fake their own kidnapping during a rebel uprising in South America and hide out in New York instead.
A New York radio reporter and his sound engineer are sent to Ecuador to cover a developing civil war. However, they lose their passports before leaving so come up with a Plan B: cover it from New York while pretending to be on the ground in Ecuador.—grantss
News radio journalist Frank Bonneville (Eric Bana) enters a murder scene posing as a cop. Getting the details of the crime, he is removed from the premises and, immediately reports the story live on the radio. Upon returning to the station, he is applauded by colleagues on getting the story first, but his boss Geoffrey Mallard (Kevin Pollak) warns that if he breaks the law one more time, he'll be fired.
That night, every-man Ian Finch (Ricky Gervais), also Frank's sound technician, takes his wife Eleanor (Vera Farmiga) to the station's annual ball, but must leave for a stake-out with co-worker Claire Maddox (Kelly Macdonald). Eleanor is not proud of Frank's career and wishes for a more exciting life. She believes Frank is lame for pretending to know many famous celebrities, but he barely even knows the people who know them.Eleanor then meets Frank, who sleeps with her, unaware she is Finch's wife. The next day, Mallard puts Frank (and Finch) on a story about an uprising in Ecuador. Frank wants a technician to go with him as he had transmission issues in his last assignment in Pakistan. Mallard selects Finch.
At first, Finch declines because he needs to try to save his marriage (he says his wife left him that very morning), but he later changes his mind. At the airport, they realize Finch has accidentally thrown their passports and plane tickets in a garbage truck (Finch had written a long letter to his wife to win her back, but Frank advises him to throw the letter away and ignore his wife for a few weeks). They return to the city and hide out at a cafe owned by Spanish couple Brigida and Domingo (America Ferrera and Raúl Castillo), located across from the radio station. With their help, Frank and Finch fake the war reports in their spare room. Frank uses his cell phone to call in the report and Finch uses his equipment to make it sound like a war zone.
After Finch and Frank decide the story needs to be bigger, they invent a man named Emilio Santiago Alvarez, who is elusive and closely linked to the war. The report alerts Washington, who now fear that Frank and Finch are targets for Alvarez's men. Meanwhile, Frank and Finch watch as other media outlets report on Alvarez, including their TV rival John Baker (Benjamin Bratt). Mallard calls Frank, telling them to go to the U.S. embassy in Quito, to be flown home. Panicking that they'll be found out, Frank and Finch destroy their SIM cards to not be traced.
The next morning, Frank fails to check in with Mallard, worrying the station. The media begins reporting on their 'disappearance'. Claire visits Eleanor to offer sympathy, but she seems more interested in getting her story out. Frank and Finch stage a hostage situation, and send a video message to the President, demanding a ransom (Brigida and Domingo act as their kidnappers) or they will be killed. Later, Frank and Finch watch as Eleanor appears on TV, so Frank finally realizes she's Finch's wife. She then performs a song, "Dollar for a Hero", calling for their safe return.
Eleanor subsequently becomes a national sensation, setting up a charity for Finch and Frank. She has already collected $124K.Mallard asks Claire to get to know her, who is using her husband's plight to start a singing career. Finch accepts Eleanor's selfishness, saying he's no longer upset she left him. On his birthday, he admits he can't keep up the charade any longer. Finch and Frank stop off at his apartment to take some of the donated money but are caught by Eleanor. The three decide to split the cash so everyone can get what they want.The men drive, then sail illegally to Ecuador. They hitch a ride to Quito from a local, stopping first at a rundown bar. There, they are kidnapped and taken to a small village, where they are locked up. Thinking they're going to die; Frank admits he slept with Eleanor.
The next morning, the captors demand ransom from Eleanor ($100K for each) but she refuses, telling them to kill Frank and Finch. When a captor returns, planning for them to fight to the death, Frank steals his gun and Finch shoots him. They escape stealing a car, make it to the U.S. embassy, and are flown home by private jet. On their return, they are greeted by the Secretary of State, press, friends, and family. Frank makes a speech, and Finch bypasses Eleanor to greet Domingo and Brigida. Eleanor then speaks to the press about her upcoming album, as Finch takes off his wedding ring. He approaches Claire, who he realizes likes him for who he is. The pair happily walk off towards the city together.
