William Douglas Street Jr., a Black Michigan man tired of his dead-end job, decides to scam his way up the socioeconomic ladder. He reinvents himself again and again, expertly impersonating a magazine reporter, an Ivy League student, a lawyer, and a surgeon—while staying one step ahead of the law.

Wily creativity sparks across this newly restored masterwork of Black American cinema, which won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 1990. Written and directed with ferocious wit and quicksilver style by its star, Wendell B. Harris Jr., this true-to-life tale of brazen hustle is a whirlwind of fun.