| Director | Terry George |
|---|---|
| Genre | crime film, drama film, film based on literature |
| Runtime | 102 min |
| Country | United States |
| Box office | $1.8 million |
Dwight Arno is an attorney going through a divorce from his wife Ruth. As part of the divorce agreement, Ruth has custody of their son Lucas while Dwight has visitation rights. Dwight takes Lucas to a baseball game. When Dwight and Lucas leave the game, Ruth calls Dwight to remind him that he is late in returning Lucas home. Dwight, worried of losing his visitation rights, drives Lucas home in a rush. Dwight loses control of his vehicle and strikes a young boy, Josh Learner, standing by the roadside. Dwight, panicked, drives away and tells Lucas they collided with a tree log.
Josh does not survive the accident. Dwight learns of Josh's death on the news. Overwhelmed with guilt and fear, he frantically attempts to cover up evidence linking him to the hit-and-run. Meanwhile, Josh's mother, Grace, slowly begins to move on from the death of her son, but her husband Ethan is determined to find the perpetrator and bring them to justice. Ethan decides to hire a lawyer, who happens to be Dwight.
Dwight is consumed with guilt and contemplates turning himself in to the police. When he goes to the police station, the investigating officer mistakes him for Ethan's lawyer and tells him that the case is going nowhere. Dwight leaves the station without confessing. When he picks up his daughter Emma from her piano lessons with Ruth, Dwight is forced to face his guilt and the reality of his situation. Dwight asks Ruth to take care of Lucas for a week, telling her that it will be the last week for a long time.
Ethan privately investigates the case; eventually discovers the horrifying truth that Dwight is the perpetrator. Angered at this revelation, Ethan confronts Dwight with a gun. Ethan forces Dwight into the trunk of his car and lets him out after a short drive. Dwight grabs the gun, pointing it at Ethan, then himself and begins to cry, saying how he wishes he had died instead of Josh. Ethan leaves Dwight to deal with his remorse. The film ends with Lucas, watching a taped confession of Dwight's hit-and-run.