James (Alexander Skarsgård) and Em (Cleopatra Coleman) are on vacation in an exceptional resort. He, a lesser-known writer, she, the daughter of the publishing house owner. Their relationship seems inertial. Maybe they are living the best life, or maybe they just don't get along like they used to. Coincidentally, they come across Gabi (Mia Goth), an angelic girl who declares herself a fan of James' book: when you're looking for validation, can such a confession take you off your feet – a poisoned apple or a honest escape from lethargy? We are going to see which side the coin will fall on this fictional island in a fictional country: hell or heaven, answer or dilemma.
Originally reconciled with what he has and with whom he is, James is shown this other way on the table: new, tempting, gorgeous. Weaving on the thread of ( mono ) myths, operating with this ever-changing story, where two worlds ( society of privileged protected by massive fences and an unexpected reinterpretation of the ancient law of the Taliban ), director Brandon Cronenberg metaphorically questions the loss of self as a stage, mandatory, in the purification of consciousness: the trauma is repeated in an endless cycle to which we cannot escape, always replacing awkward moments that we have almost forgotten with new ones, about which – when – is produced we believe we will never be able to remove them from the brain. And then more, and more serious, pour into a lump that grows incessantly. The journey to nowhere becomes initiatory, in a sadistic game with its own self, which seems to scream from all corners: life is just a road to death.