琼(凯瑟琳·特纳 Kathleen Turner 饰)是一名小说家,创作过许许多多充满了冒险和刺激的故事,销量十分可观。可是尽管如此,琼自己的生活却向来四平八稳波澜不惊,在内心里,她十分希望能够和自己笔下的主人公那样,来一场奇遇。 机会很快就来临了,某日,琼收到了一封来自哥伦比亚的来信,原来,琼的姐姐伊莱恩(玛丽艾伦泰勒 Mary Ellen Trainor 饰)被宝石大盗艾拉(Zack Norman 饰)和纳尔夫(丹尼·德维托 Danny DeVito 饰)绑架了,他们所要的并非赎金,而是一张藏宝图。心急如焚的琼立刻启程赶往哥伦比亚。在那里,琼结识了英明神武胆识过人的男子杰克(迈克尔·道格拉斯 Michael Douglas 饰),两人结伴继续前进。
At Christine's funeral, her foster son suddenly shows up, a grown-up man with whom the family has been out of contact for quite some time. He brought a letter, stating that Christine wants to be buried in Wentelen, to the bewilderment of her biological children, and even more so to that of her husband. In addition to that, all the relatives are surprised that the foster son of Christine apparently maintained a correspondence with Christine. Nevertheless, Christine's last wish is respected, and they decided to bury her in Wentelen, and wish to do so traditionally, meaning walking behind the hearse. During a walk of several days, all the relatives (foster sisters, foster father, alleged friends and real ones, the foster son, lovers) have enough time to get to know each other better. Because in the end they have no other conclusion than that nobody really knew anyone. Old intrigues are dug up, the foster sisters finally learn why the foster brother just disappeared from the family, and they can begin to develop a real image of the mother. Once Christine's final resting place is reached and she is buried, all family ties, good and bad, are shaken around.