Following a nuclear-bomb scare in the early 1960s, eccentric inventor Calvin Webber (Christopher Walken) seals himself and his pregnant wife in a state-of-the-art underground shelter. Thirty-five years later, Calvin's son, Adam (Brendan Fraser), emerges. Venturing into the daylight for the first time in search of a potential bride, he soon meets the worldly Eve (Alicia Silverstone), who takes a shine to his naïveté.