Lane (Mia Farrow) is a young woman who has emotional problems. After suffering an anxiety crisis, she decides to go to her cabin in Vermont for a change of scenery and spend the summer. There she meets her neighbor Peter (Sam Waterston), a handsome writer with whom she falls madly in love.
After a few days, Lane receives a visit from her mother (Elaine Stritch), a famous actress, and her boyfriend. In addition to her, her friend Stephanie (Dianne Wiest) also decides to go see her.
The plot complicates when the characters begin to live together in this place. On the one hand, the protagonist blames her mother for her misfortunes, since since she was a child she has felt her lack of affection. She also witnessed the traumatic murder of her mother’s lover which caused the psychological problems she now suffers from. As if that were not enough, now that her love for Peter had given her back the will to live, she discovers that her friend Stephanie is having a relationship with him.