| Director | Christopher Neil, Christopher Neil |
|---|---|
| Budget | $5 million |
Fifteen-year-old Ellis Whitman (Graham Phillips) is leaving his home in Tucson, Arizona, for his freshman year at Gates Academy, an East Coast prep school. He leaves behind Wendy (Vera Farmiga), his flaky, New Age mother and Goat Man (David Duchovny), a weed-smoking goat trekker and botanist. Goat Man is the only real father Ellis has ever known, since his biological father, Frank (Ty Burrell), left when he was a baby.
Upon arriving at Gates Academy, Ellis befriends his roommate Barney Cannel (Nicholas Lobue), a cross-country runner, and Rosenberg, who usually does not get anything higher than a C in his classes, but is smart enough to sneak in marijuana. Ellis also takes an interest in Minnie (Dakota Johnson), a local girl who works in the school library; his friends often refer to her as a prostitute, according to rumors. Meanwhile, Goat Man and Wendy have been incommunicado, which Barney points out often. On a phone call, Ellis discovers that his mother has a new boyfriend named Bennet (Justin Kirk), who is rude and disrespectful.
One day, Ellis receives a letter in the mail from his long-estranged father from Washington, DC, requesting for Ellis to spend Thanksgiving dinner with him. Ellis decides to fly to Washington with Barney, who is also having Thanksgiving with his mother there. Ellis finally meets his father and his father's pregnant and kind-hearted wife, Judy (Keri Russell). One night, Ellis gets a call from Barney telling him that he is in possession of marijuana. Ellis sneaks out for the night, but Frank finds out that he left. On the way back from his flight from DC, Barney and Ellis get drunk and fight with each other in their dorm room, resulting in a dent in the wall which costs Wendy $700 and Ellis to end up in the school hospital. Afterwards, Ellis begins to get closer to Minnie.
Over Christmas break, Ellis returns to Tucson, but feels betrayed by Goat Man when he discovers that he slept with their young but malicious neighbor, Aubrey (Adelaide Kane). His relationship with adults he grew up with is now challenged.