Soft-spoken Leland Fitzgerald (Gosling) commits a crime that shocks the soul of his community. As the son of a world-renowned author (Spacey) and because his motive is a genuine mystery, the boy becomes a touchstone for controversy. In pursuing “the reason why”, aspiring writer Pearl Madison (Cheadle) see the chance for a career-making book. Leland’s haunting tale is, at once, deeply poignant and darkly funny, an investigation into the impenetrable secrets of the suburban American family. The film explores the resonance of a single violent act, showing how it affects the families of both the guilty and the innocent.