An alcoholic hospital janitor with a murky, dark family history meets a capricious woman with even worse substance abuse problems than him. As they get sober and build a relationship, a series of misfortunes at work drives him to confront his painful past and his understanding of death.

As a woman prods her ill-tempered mother to move into a nursing home, a strange encounter prompts her to reflect on their lifelong, often rocky relationship.

A failed Jewish-American painter embarks on a year-long trip through Italy to write a book on art history. A chance encounter with a Jewish refugee, however, quickly derails his writing, his trip, and his grip on reality.