"Brilliant!"-Jeffrey Anderson, San Francisco Examiner

Olivier Gourmet, winner of the Best Actor Award at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, commandingly plays Olivier, a divorced carpentry instructor at a vocational training center whose life is turned upside down by the arrival of a mysterious student.

Francis, a 16 year old boy, is unaware of any connection he may have to his new teacher, but it is clear that the weight of the past is a heavy burden on Olivier. While struggling to maintain a professional distance in Francis' presence, he can't stop himself from following the boy through the training center hallways and through the city streets after class. In vain, Olivier tries to understand the motivations of his acts, however, as the film advances, they slowly come to know each other and the relationship between the two psychologically bruised characters is strengthened.

When Olivier's ex-wife Magali (Isabella Soupart) is told of the boy's arrival she grows horrified, thrusting us even further into Olivier's conflicted world. Soon, the secret that binds the boy to Olivier and Magali is revealed and a profoundly emotional and morally complex situation unfolds.