Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1991. High school freshman Charlie is a wallflower, always watching life from the sidelines, until two senior students, Sam and her stepbrother Patrick, become his mentors, helping him discover the joys of friendship, music and love.
A tough District Attorney goes after a murderous crime gang, only to find that his witnesses, an innocent family, have clammed up in fear of reprisals.
Sophie and Otto Bentwood are a middle-aged, middle class, childless Brooklyn Heights couple trapped in a loveless marriage. He is an attorney, she a translator of books. Their existence is affected not only by their disintegrating relationship but by the threats of urban crime and vandalism that surround them everywhere they turn, leaving them feeling paranoid, scared, and desperately helpless.
Three stories that explore love, commitment, and loyalty between couples and friends. "Two for Dinner" where a married couple temporarily living in two different locations are more separated than they think. "Sailing Lesson" about a long-married couple who spend a day on a sailboat rekindling their romance… and unexpected events arise. "Late Lunch" where a young woman who recently lost her mother gathers together a group of her mother’s friends to share memories, with surprising revelations.
A young man called Andrew is forced to endure a bitter encounter with a man known as the Cameraman, who enjoys filming beatings, murders and rapes in an abandoned underpass.
A widowed mother and her two sons move to Baltimore and struggle to adjust to urban life, encountering numerous eccentric characters along the way.
Moemi is not overly pleased when Yukio brings home a couple of turtles to keep her company. Although Yukio works at home as a writer, Moemi feels neglected and desired a dog or a cat, but neither is allowed in their apartment.
A woman turns to prescription medication as a way of handling her anxiety concerning her husband's upcoming release from prison.
Five friends in their 20ies try to make it as artists while struggling with psychological disorders and disregulated lives. Abandoned to themselves, they try to escape the pain with drugs and parties, but, soon, that reveals not to be enough. Past violence comes back to the surface, old secrets and addictions get revealed...
A desperate man places a bizarre classified ad to end his life, but a strange turn of events occurs when an aimless girl decides to answer. As their lives collide, they realize the smallest choices can be the difference between life and death.