Daniel Dillon, portrayed by Peter Mullan, is an Irish immigrant who made his way to Kingdom Come, a town rooted deep in the Sierra Nevada mountains during the Gold Rush of 1849. Fast forward to 1867, and Dillon boasts a vault overflowing with gold, making him the proprietor of virtually all significant commerce in the area. This means that anyone looking to mine for gold, secure a hotel room, engage in banking, or even commit a crime must navigate the intricate web of Dillon’s influence.
Donald Dalglish, a surveyor played by Wes Bentley, represents the interests of the Central Pacific Railroad, tasked with determining the best route for a new train line either through Kingdom Come or its surroundings. Dillon is particularly interested in ensuring that the railway passes through his town, as it promises to inject even more business into his ventures.
Dillon’s acquaintance with Lucia, a mysterious woman played by Milla Jovovich, adds another dimension to his life. Lucia's enigmatic role in the town involves singing in Portuguese, acting as a liaison for Dillon, and sourcing women for visiting men. She attempts to arrange an introduction between Dalglish and Dillon, but initially, Dalglish hesitates. However, as he uncovers the complicated relationship between Dillon and Lucia, he reconsiders.
Traveling with Dalglish are two women of notable importance: the fragile yet beautiful Elena Burn (Nastassja Kinski) and her lovely teenage daughter Hope (Sarah Polley). They come to the town on a mission to find Dillon. In a poignant moment, Elena directs Hope to present a rosary to Dillon, who recognizes her immediately but cannot catch her. Hope soon persuades Dalglish to take her on a survey run the following day.
The arrival of these women threatens to unravel a dark secret that Dillon has fiercely guarded for two decades. Through flashbacks, we learn that Dillon first came to the mountains with his Polish wife, also named Elena, and their infant daughter, Hope. On a bitterly cold night, they stumbled across a shack owned by a worn-out gold prospector named Burn (Tom McCamus). In a desperate move for wealth, Dillon had traded his wife and child to Burn for a small gold claim that eventually made him rich. It’s revealed that Dillon had given the original rosary to Elena to soothe baby Hope's cries.
Under Dillon's orders, Lucia assumes responsibility for Hope's appearance, dressing her attractively to appeal to Dalglish. At a local event, she sings while Hope plays the piano and recites a poem. During this time, Dillon inquires about Burn, Hope's supposed father, creating a palpable tension as Hope grapples with her fractured family connections.
As events unfold, Dillon learns that Elena is in town looking for him, having fallen on hard times after Burn’s passing. She asks him for financial support to care for Hope. Dillon struggles with his emotions, grappling with his history while wanting to maintain control over his new life.
Feeling cornered, Dillon ends his relationship with Lucia, bestowing upon her material gifts instead of emotional commitment. Lucia's heart shatters, aware that Dillon's interest in Hope complicates their legacy further. While the town prepares for festivities, hope turns into uncertainty as the tension builds between Dillon and Dalglish amidst rising stakes regarding the railroad's path.
After Dillon's attempts at brief reconciliations and festive marriages with Elena, matters deteriorate, and tensions explode, literally, with devastating consequences for those involved. The narrative crescendos with Dillon’s heart-wrenching realization of his losses as he watches Kingdom Come fade into ashes, leaving behind only memories.
Ultimately, as the town dwindles, his recklessness leads to tragic endings, culminating in a frozen farewell as both Hope and Dalglish find themselves caught in a web of nostalgia and grief, witnessing the aftermath of Dillon's destructive decisions. The former townspeople scattered to Lisboa, named after Lucia's homeland, as the past's ghosts refuse to stay buried under the snow and ashes of lost dreams.
