| Director | Daniel Barnz |
|---|---|
| Genre | drama film |
| Runtime | 102 min |
| Country | United States |
| Budget | $7 million |
| Box office | $2.9 million |
A year after surviving a car accident that killed her son, former attorney Claire Bennett struggles with chronic pain, making her angry. Silvana, her housekeeper, caretaker and chauffeur, looks after all of her needs.
Claire abuses pain medication to deal with her son's death and the suicide of Nina, a member of her chronic pain support group. With her marriage to Jason and life falling apart, she ends up buying drugs on the street to support her addiction. She also dreams vividly and hallucinates about Nina.
In physical therapy, Claire is uncooperative and risks her medication being cut off, as her condition has not improved. After her session, Claire jumps into the pool with body weights, seemingly to kill herself. She stays on the bottom for a long time before rising to the surface.
At the threat of a lawsuit, the support group leader, Annette, gives Claire Nina's home address. Claire goes to the house, and Nina's husband Roy, having been tipped off by Annette, confronts her as she is leaving. Bonding over their loss and isolation, Claire and Roy go to Nina's grave. A few nights later Claire surprises him at home but takes Nina's leftover Percocet. Claire's dreams of Nina continue.
The man responsible for Claire's car accident, Leonard, shows up at her house to apologize. She physically attacks him. Afterwards, she inadvertently overdoses on the pain medication. Taken to the hospital, she dreams of Nina presenting her with a birthday cake with six lit candles, explaining that she feels guilty about not being able to make a homemade birthday cake for her son.
Claire is discharged from the hospital and struggles to remain drug free. She asks Silvana to drive her to the drive-in where she had her first date with Jason. Wandering away, she lies down on the nearby railroad tracks and hallucinates a conversation with Nina, who gets Claire to admit she was a good mother. Claire hears Silvana calling her and when she gets up, Nina vanishes. Silvana loudly criticizes Claire for abusing everyone and pushing away Jason, who is also suffering the loss of their son. She is interrupted when Claire notices the car has been stolen, forcing them to stay in a motel.
The next day Becky, a girl on her way to Los Angeles, tries to steal Claire's purse. Claire brings her home to make her a homemade cake. Silvana later wakes Claire when she sees Becky has in fact stolen the purse, but has left a beautiful cake. Claire takes it to Roy for his son's birthday, as a way of thanking Nina. She and Silvana go to visit her son's grave, where Silvana hangs a wind chime in a nearby tree. On the ride home, Claire finally sits upright in the car.