Set in a small town drive-in, the story revolves around Akio, who harbors complex feelings for his sister Marié, who returns home after her husband’s suicide with her son. The narrative intertwines with the lives of Akio’s half-brother Keisuke, part-time worker Emiko, their father Shōzō, high school teacher Ōtsuji, Akio’s lover Maria, Wakamatsu’s wife Kuriko, and Kuriko’s affair partner Yamaguchi, creating a web of intricate relationships.

The dead body of Maki Tsujimoto, a popular stage actress, is discovered in a theater in Oji. After striking her in the back of the head with a bronze statue prop, the criminal laid the body on the floor and pointed a light at it, "directing" the crime scene as if it were a scene from a play.