The House Next Door

Ingrid is a successful author who learns that Martha, a friend she once worked with at the same magazine, is facing terminal cancer. The two reconnect at the Manhattan hospital where Martha is receiving treatment, and soon Martha begins to tell Ingrid the story of her life. The conversation becomes a journey through years past, memories that still weigh heavily on the present, and a plan that hinges on Martha’s choice about how she will end her life.

The tale Martha shares takes us back to the 1970s, when she becomes pregnant by Fred, a young man she met in college. Fred goes off to fight in the Vietnam War, returning with the scars of PTSD. He eventually leaves Martha and remarries, leaving Martha to navigate life with their daughter Michelle, who constantly questions where Fred is and what happened to him. In a bid to appease her daughter, Martha reaches out to Fred’s wife, only to learn that Fred had died trying to rescue someone—someone who did not exist—after hearing voices he believed came from a house fire. This revelation fuels Michelle’s growing resentment and drives a wedge between mother and daughter, leaving Martha increasingly isolated with no real family of her own.

Back in the present, the sense of isolation intensifies for Martha, who reveals to Ingrid that she has purchased euthanasia pills to end her life on her own terms. Ingrid experiences a deep internal conflict but gradually comes to terms with Martha’s decision and agrees to stay with her during the final moments. The plan unfolds in a rented country house in Woodstock, New York, where Martha says she will know she has died when her bedroom door is closed the following morning. One night, Ingrid wakes to find the door shut and Martha presumed dead, only to discover that Martha is still alive. Martha explains that she opened a window and a breeze caused the door to close, presenting the incident as a sort of rehearsal for what she expects to come. Ingrid, though unsettled, remains perplexed and irritated by the strange, unsettling incident.

Ingrid’s circle expands to include Damian, a fellow writer who once acted as a shared lover to both Ingrid and Martha and who understands Martha’s plan. Damian helps secure a lawyer Ingrid can rely on in case of police involvement after Martha’s death. When Ingrid returns home, she learns that Martha has died—found outside on a lounge chair with the bedroom door closed—and discovers a note from Martha thanking her and asking her to contact Michelle. The interrogation by a police officer—who reveals a suspicion rooted in religious fundamentalism—questions Ingrid about her lack of awareness of Martha’s suicide plans, and the officer confirms that Martha had even invited another friend to join her before Ingrid. After the uneasy encounter, Ingrid reaches out to Damian and the lawyer for assistance.

Ingrid then reaches out to Michelle and invites her to the house where Martha died. The final image shifts to the two women lying together on the lounge chairs outside as snow begins to fall, a quiet tableau that underscores the intimate, fragile bonds that have carried them through a complex web of memory, love, and loss.

Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 16:12