When a guardian angel – who invisibly watches over the citizens of Los Angeles – becomes captivated by a strong-willed heart surgeon, he ponders trading in his pure, otherworldly existence for a mortal life with his beloved. The couple embarks on a tender but forbidden romance spanning heaven and Earth.
In a vibrant tapestry of love and longing, nine interconnected souls navigate romance and heartbreak in L.A., where passions collide and truths unfold, revealing that the heart's desires often lead us where we least expect.
Private eye Jake Gittes lives off of the murky moral climate of sunbaked, pre-World War II Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair, Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits, uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together.
Although Eva is a good swimmer, she was unable to save her brother from almost drowning. He is in a coma, and the cold relationship with her mother doesn’t help Eva feeling any less guilty. Then she discovers a mysterious puddle in her bathroom that leads her into the depths of the sea
A man wanders out of the desert not knowing who he is. His brother finds him, and helps to pull his memory back of the life he led before he walked out on his family and disappeared four years earlier.
Many loosely connected characters cross paths in this film, based on the stories of Raymond Carver. Waitress Doreen Piggot accidentally runs into a boy with her car. Soon after walking away, the child lapses into a coma. While at the hospital, the boy's grandfather tells his son, Howard, about his past affairs. Meanwhile, a baker starts harassing the family when they fail to pick up the boy's birthday cake.
A young boy, Alfred, is dying, but through the stories about Helium, a magical fantasy world, told by the hospital's eccentric janitor, Enzo, Alfred regains the joy and happiness of his life, and finds a safe haven away from daily life.
Newly arrived in town Nat and Gabe accept a dinner invitation from the volatile Hungarian Helene and her boorish husband Sasha. Whilst the other guests, ex-Bananarama member Marty, Angie, who 'makes bullets' and the supposedly suicidal Danny are affable enough, Nat and Gabe are shocked by their hosts' very public rows and Gabe's attempt at peace-making is awkwardly received. Nat is taken aback when virtual stranger Helene confides in her about Sasha's suspected infidelity and Gabe is rudely rebuffed when he tries to have a heart to heart with Sasha. After Helene physically attacks her husband the newcomers are desperate to leave but when Danny drops a bombshell Gabe is torn between responsibility and the easy way out.
An obsessive mother, on the verge of a nervous breakdown. A father, carefully blotted out from all the family photos and a dreadful child-psychiatrist with unconventional methods - This is the summary of young Hazel's life, secretly attracted to boys...
Former policeman Lenny Nero has moved into a more lucrative trade: the illegal sale of virtual reality-like recordings that allow users to experience the emotions and past experiences of others. While they typically contain tawdry incidents, Nero is shocked when he receives one showing a murder.
A renowned New York playwright is enticed to California to write for the movies and discovers the hellish truth of Hollywood.
A federal agent searches for a potential killer among the bizarre residents of a dilapidated Los Angeles hotel.
A Japanese Yakuza gangster's deadly existence in his homeland gets him exiled to Los Angeles, where he is taken in by his little brother and his brother's gang.
An anthology of 5 different cab drivers in 5 American and European cities and their remarkable fares on the same eventful night.
At Bertrand Morane's burial there are many of the women that the 40-year-old engineer loved. In flashback Bertrand's life and love affairs are told by himself while writing an autobiographical novel.
Blonde Betty Elms has only just arrived in Hollywood to become a movie star when she meets an enigmatic brunette with amnesia. Meanwhile, as the two set off to solve the second woman's identity, filmmaker Adam Kesher runs into ominous trouble while casting his latest project.
Jesse, a small-time criminal, high-tails it to Los Angeles to rendezvous with a French exchange student. Stealing a car and accidentally killing a highway patrolman, he becomes the most wanted fugitive in L.A.
Caye is a young prostitute whose family is unaware of her profession. She meets her striking Dominican neighbour Zulema, an illegal immigrant, after she finds her in the bathroom, badly beaten up. They strike up a close friendship unbeknownst to Caye's xenophobic co-workers.
In the late 1940s, a murderous couple known as the 'The Lonely Hearts Killers' kills close to a dozen people. Two detectives try to nab the duo who find their targets via the personals in the paper.
Tom Ludlow is a disillusioned L.A. Police Officer, rarely playing by the rules and haunted by the death of his wife. When evidence implicates him in the execution of a fellow officer, he is forced to go up against the cop culture he's been a part of his entire career, ultimately leading him to question the loyalties of everyone around him.