In 1959, affluent businessman Michael Courtland (Cliff Roberston) and his wife (Geneviève Bujold) are celebrating their tenth anniversary when his daughter and wife are kidnapped and held for ransom. The effort to rescue the girl and her mother ends tragically, and Courtland merely exists, his days consumed with guilt. Many years later, still grieving over his loss, he returns to Florence – the city where he first met his wife – where he meets a young woman who bears a remarkable resemblance to her. Set largely in New Orleans, this incredibly atmospheric thriller has a southern gothic feel with its dreamlike photography (by cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond) and deliberate pacing.