Sofia Coppola's directorial debut is an adaptation of the groundbreaking novel by Jeffrey Eugenides. The film is set in the 70s in a dreamlike scenery conservative district of Grosse Point, a suburb of Michigan. The film tells the story of a typical American Catholic family. Mr. Lisbon mathematician from the local high school and his wife housewife bringing up her teenage daughter in the raw but a happy atmosphere. Girls arouse great interest the boys from the neighborhood, who thanks to them discover the secrets of femininity.

When the youngest of the sisters, thirteen-year-Cecilia, commits suicide, fascination with the boys deepens. They follow every movement girls, collect items belonging to them, study diary Cecilia, looking for answers to nagging questions. Meanwhile, after the death of Cecilia Lisbon family state disintegrates. Mrs. Lisbon isolates girls to protect them from the evil influence of the environment. When one of the daughters, Lux, the ball does not come back for the night, the sisters Lisbon punishment are trapped in their own home. They do not go to school, do not listen to records, do not meet up with friends. The boys of the neighborhood establish secret contact with them and try to help them escape from the house.