After burying the body in a park, Hela runs away with her children and finds refuge with an elderly couple, who take pity on her. But her new lease on life is short-lived. The police track her down and she is placed on trial. She lives in a 19th-century apartment block and wears simple, white clothes which could belong to any era. The shock comes with the realisation that Hela is trapped in the values of the past whilst the world around her is that of the present.
Nothing is spared in the attempt to make Hela out to be a victim.
Few people could argue with Kedzierzawska's premise that Hela is guilty of the crime, but she is not the one who caused the tragedy. However, in countries where this debate is less polarised, Nic will seem like a rather odd, if not bland, piece of film-making. Much of the film's strangeness lies in the treatment of Hela. Hela is a passive victim and, worse still, the driving pathos of the story stems from the fact that her husband cares so little for her blind devotion. Hela can only survive through the charity and goodwill of other people, and she is stymied when she meets anyone who can't or won't provide it.