A funny and tender film about James Sveck (Regbo), a vulnerable teenager with a deep appreciation for the world and no idea how to live in it. James is the child of divorced parents living in Manhattan (Harden and Gallagher). While his estranged parents may be better served examining their own lives, they seem more content conspiring to guide him in a more "normal" direction.

James, however, rejects all the assumptions that govern the adult world around him, including the expectation that he will go college in the fall. Articulate, sensitive, and cynical, he would much prefer to move to an old house in the country and spend his life reading books and learning long forgotten trades.