The movie is based on a best-selling crime novel of the same name, and the original novel tells the story of a historically true crime: In 1873, two murders took place on a small island in New Hampshire; both victims were women, one of whom was killed by the killer with an axe, and the other victim survived. She accused a man named Lois Wigner of being the killer. On the basis of the victims' confessions and the evidence found at the crime scene, the police initially identified Lois Wigner as the murderer and sentenced him to death by hanging in 1875. Lois Wigner, on the other hand, insisted on his innocence from the beginning to the end, and his behavior caused all sorts of speculations and suspicions later on.

The movie, based on the novel, begins with Jane (Kathryn McCormack), a magazine photojournalist, and her down-on-his-luck poet husband, Thomas (Sean Penn), on the small island of New Hampshire, where they are trying to investigate a murder that took place more than 100 years ago. Joining the Janes are another couple, her husband's brother Rick (Josh Lucas) and his girlfriend Adeline (Elizabeth Hurley).

Jane is working full time on the case when she is suddenly surprised to find out that it seems her husband is having an affair with his brother's girlfriend, Adeline, who is an extremely seductive woman. While Jane is suspicious of her husband, she herself falls into an emotional abyss - she unknowingly falls in love with her husband's brother, Rick, and the entangled emotions make the story breathe a touch of vitality amidst the dreariness.

While the four are in emotional turmoil, a case that took place more than 100 years ago slowly reveals the truth. It turns out that in 1873, two young Norwegian ladies, Annis (Vanessa Shaw) and Karen (Katrin Cartlidge), were inexplicably and brutally murdered on the island. The case is followed by another woman on the island, Marlan Hunford (Sarah Polley), who struggles with a loveless marriage, and who accuses Lois Wigner of being the real killer, and in the end, Lois Wigner is hanged.

After investigating the case, Jane believes that Lois Wigner is innocent. However, she herself is facing her own emotional crisis. While she is hesitating, a storm occurs on the small island of New Hampshire, a storm that exposes all the emotional entanglements and the truth of the case from 100 years ago, and it is at the moment of lightning and thunder that Jane finally realizes what really happened on that night 100 years ago.