True West follows the story of two estranged brothers, Austin and Lee. Austin is a successful screenwriter who offers to house sit for his mother while working on a script he is trying to sell to Hollywood producer Saul Kimmer. Lee, an alcoholic and thief, unexpectedly shows up and proceeds to pitch his own movie idea to Kimmer, who then decides to junk Austin’s bleak, modern love story and write Lee’s trashy Western tale. The two brothers end up in a role reversal, with each admitting that he has always envied the other’s way of life.