Sabina Giovanna Mezzogiorno leads a relatively ordinary life, finding satisfaction in her work as a dubbing actress and in a partnership with Franco Alessio Boni, an actor struggling to find steady work who reluctantly takes a role in a television series directed by the talented yet disillusioned Andrea Negri. The quiet rhythm of her days shifts when the graves of her parents are moved, triggering a flood of memories from a strict middle-class upbringing. Soon, Sabina begins to wrestle with terrifying nightmares and seeks comfort in Emilia, her closest friend who has been blind for years due to a degenerative disease.
During a routine stroll through the city center with Maria, Sabina learns about a hidden wound in Maria’s life: she has been abandoned by her husband for a twenty-year-old lover. At the same time, Sabina discovers she is pregnant but keeps the news from Franco. She decides to spend Christmas with her older brother, Daniele Luigi Lo Cascio, who teaches literature at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, hoping that a change of scenery will bring clarity. In the warmth of her brother’s home, Sabina speaks openly about the pregnancy and the recurring nightmares, seeking a sense of serenity amid mounting questions about her past.
The turning point arrives on New Year’s Eve, when Franco betrays her with Anita, an actress from the series. It is then that Daniele reveals the long-buried truth of their childhood: their father had abused them, with their mother’s quiet acquiescence. Daniele had stepped in to protect Sabina, going so far as to threaten their father with violence. The bitter revelation hangs in the air, and years later, their father dies soon after Daniele arranges for him to receive a lethal dose of morphine.
Daniele’s confession tightens the sisters and brothers’ bond, and he believes Sabina’s upcoming motherhood will be a path toward healing. Back in Italy, Sabina’s relationship with Franco cools despite the pregnancy, and Franco resists admitting his infidelity. Meanwhile, Sabina rejoices in the growing romance between Emilia and Maria—the result of the loneliness they both shared and the comfort Sabina had hoped to offer by introducing them.
The tension rises during a summer visit to Negri’s farmhouse, where Franco collaborates with the director on a new film project. Maria grapples with her own feelings for Emilia, while Franco, unsettled by Sabina’s distance, finally admits he has been unfaithful. Sabina speaks openly about the pain of her childhood, and her sudden disappearance from the farmhouse triggers alarm given her late-stage pregnancy and the intense heat.
She ends up in labor on a deserted train, surrounded by olive trees, and is met at the hospital by Franco and the others. She gives birth to a baby boy, a moment that reaffirms her connection with Franco, and also leads Maria and Emilia to reconcile. When the newborn arrives, Negri decides to include him in his film project, despite a nurse’s warning that only parents should handle the baby. In the closing moments, Daniele vows to visit Sabina and his newborn nephew in America, holding onto hope that they will both overcome their past traumas and build fulfilling lives.
