The film begins with a young boy named Tim (Joshua John Miller), who is seen playing on a bridge. He hears a shout and spots Samson/John (Daniel Roebuck) sitting by the shore. Tim quickly rides off on his bike, while Samson can be found smoking a cigarette next to the lifeless body of Jamie (Danyi Deats). In a daze, Samson later walks into a convenience store, where Tim witnesses him stealing two beers. Tim then approaches Samson, asking for illicit substances, and hops into Samson's car. They head to Feck's place in hopes of scoring some drugs, but he’s absent.
Returning home, Tim finds his brother Matt (Keanu Reeves) embroiled in a heated argument with their mother ([Constance Forslund]). Meanwhile, their little sister Kim ([Tammy Smith]) seeks Matt's assistance for a funeral to honor her lost doll, underscoring the family’s dysfunction. Layne (Crispin Glover) arrives to take Matt out, but when Tim asks to tag along, Layne declines, prompting Tim to leave on his bike regardless of their mother’s protests.
Layne and Matt finally reach Feck's house, only to find him playing saxophone for an inflatable doll. Layne manages to score some drugs from Feck, who chillingly speaks about a girl he was forced to kill. At school, Layne and Matt share a joint with friends Clarissa (Ione Skye), Maggie (Roxana Zal), and Tony (Josh Richman). Later, Samson/System John reappears and guides them to see Jamie’s corpse. Feeling anxious, Matt opts to leave, while Layne strategizes on how to establish alibis.
During class, Mr. Burkewaite instills lessons about radicals while Clarissa flirts with him. As rumors of the murder circulate, Layne tries borrowing Mike's (Phillip Brock) truck, but Mike refuses, albeit consenting to drive. They all witness the body being retrieved from the river, and Layne insists on burying her, but none agree to help, not even John. Clarissa, uneasy about keeping the secret, finds herself threatened by Layne, making her hesitant to contact the authorities. After a failed attempt to reach Matt, she finds herself spiraling into distress.
That evening, Layne rolls Jamie’s corpse into the river. John buys him more beer, appearing indifferent to Layne’s attempts at protecting him. When they arrive at John’s house and see police cars outside, Layne panics while John remains eerily calm. They go to Feck for assistance, where a bond forms as they converse. Matt, realizing the severity of the situation, brings detective Bennett (Tom Bower) to the site the following day, and the police soon recover Jamie's body. Bennett interrogates Matt about the murder, leading to tension upon returning home, where Matt clashes with his mother’s boyfriend Jim (Leo Ross).
An encounter with Tim escalates, resulting in a confrontation where Tim threatens to expose Matt’s secret to Layne. Desperate, Matt makes arrangements with his friend Moko ([Yuzo Nishihara]) to borrow a car and heads back to Feck’s place. A group including Layne, Clarissa, and Matt attempts to extract a confession from Mike, but they are deterred by Mike’s father, who intimidates them away with a shotgun. Fuming, Layne expels Clarissa from his car, prompting Matt to walk her home, resulting in a tender kiss and a decision to visit the park together.
Unexpectedly, Layne arrives at Feck's while Tim and Moko hide out. After Layne leaves, the boys rummage through Feck's belongings looking for a gun but end up getting intoxicated on marijuana instead. Meanwhile, John and Feck commit a robbery, stealing ammunition. Amidst it all, Matt confides in Clarissa about telling the police about Jamie, and while their romance blossoms, gunshots in the distance go unnoticed by the couple.
In pursuit of John, Layne gets high on pills but is ultimately found by police passed out in his vehicle. Upon returning home, Matt faces a screaming confrontation with his mother, who declares she’s abandoning her children. The narrative unfolds with reporters gathering information, and Bennett presses Layne further. Within the classroom, Mr. Burkewaite lectures about morality and the apathy towards Jamie, leaving Clarissa distraught.
As the youths gather by the river to skip school, Matt discovers Feck’s doll floating nearby. Tensions rise when Layne confronts Mike again, only to have Matt intervene, revealing he turned in John. Shortly thereafter, Layne stumbles upon John's dead body. In a chaotic climax, Tim confronts Matt fueled by rage, but ultimately, Matt persuades him to calm down before the police arrive to detain everyone.
The movie concludes with Feck confined to a hospital bed, openly confessing to both his initial and John's murders. The story wraps with Jamie's funeral, as the children finally confront their emotions, encapsulating a journey of fear, moral dilemmas, and the impact of their choices.
