The Claim is the story of Daniel Dillon (Peter Mullan), who during the Gold Rush had sold his wife and daughter to a man for a claim on a gold mine. With that claim, Dillon was able to continue his quest and eventually find what he was looking for. Twenty years have passed, and in the wake of his success, a full-fledged town called Kingdom Come has sprung up around him. He owns the mine, the bank, the liquor store, and the hotel, and he runs it all as a king would rule over his kingdom. All seems to be going smoothly until three strangers come into town. 

One of the strangers is Donald Dalglish (Wes Bentley), who is in Kingdom Come on behalf of the Central Pacific Railroad. He and his team are to survey the area for possible expansion of the railroad, which has the possibility of bringing great opportunity to the town. As a businessman who has a lot to gain if the railroad is routed through Kingdom Come, Dillon does all that he can to make sure that the survey team is met with every hospitality the town has to offer. By hospitality, I mean food, drink and the services of the brothel that is owned and operated by his girlfriend, Lucia (Milla Jovovich). All this is done to try and pursuade the survey team to bring the railroad through Kingdom Come.

The other two strangers are Hope (Sarah Polley) and her mother Elena (Nastassja Kinski), who may possibly be the downfall of Dillon. They are the link to his past and have the potential to undo all of his success. Hope is under the impression that Dillon is a long lost uncle that her mother wanted to get in contact with, but there is something unspoken between them. Hope eventually meets up with Dalglish again and an innocent romance sparks. As actors, both Polley and Bentley have a certain quality that can either be portrayed as innocence or the direct opposite. That's what makes them so good for these roles. The story is told mainly from Hope's point of view and seems to put her in the seat of the main character, but as a whole, the story has more to do with Dillon.