Precocious young Harriet (Evan Rachel Wood) lives with her much older sister, Gwen (Mary Stuart Masterson), at a New Hampshire motel owned by their mother (Cathy Moriarty), and dreams of a life beyond her neglectful family and stultifying town. When Ricky (Kevin Bacon), a mentally disabled man, stays at the motel, Harriet finds him to be kinder and more interesting than anyone she has ever known before. After tragedy strikes, Harriet and Ricky cling to each other ever more tightly.