Like the Anna Sewell novel that inspired it, this film adaptation is told from the perspective of a majestic stallion named Black Beauty (Alan Cumming). As a colt, Black Beauty has a relaxed life in the English countryside, owned by the kindly farmer Grey (Sean Bean). However, later in life, he is forced to work as a taxi horse in London. As an aged horse, Black Beauty finds himself in the care of loving owners again, but only after a series of thrilling hardships and triumphs.

A tough trucker with a cheeky pet orangutan, Philo Beddoe (Clint Eastwood) moonlights as a fighter, with his close friend Orville Boggs (Geoffrey Lewis) setting up matches for him. When Philo begins dating country singer Lynn Halsey-Taylor (Sondra Locke), and she abruptly disappears, he goes off in search of her, his simian companion and Orville in tow. On their cross-country trek, Philo and friends repeatedly clash with bikers, leading up to a violent showdown.

Bob is a washed-up revolutionary who lives in a state of stoned paranoia, surviving off-grid with his spirited and self-reliant daughter, Willa. When his evil nemesis resurfaces and Willa goes missing, the former radical scrambles to find her as both father and daughter battle the consequences of their pasts.