During the Kaunas pogrom in 1941, Andrius Gluosnis kills his Jewish neighbour Isaac with a soldier’s spade. He suspects Isaac told on him to the NKVD, accusing Gluosnis of being a nationalist – this resulted in him being jailed. Years after, he works for the KGB as a forensic photographer, and lives with the woman he has dreamt about his whole life. However, he is haunted by his guilt. As a coincidence his friend, film director Gutauskas comes back from the USA to make a movie about the Lietukis massacre. He investigates, reads archives about the killings, and comes close to gruesome facts.

The film discusses themes of friendship, love, regret and self-liberation in the difficult historical context. The director uses a method that resembles the work of Flemish artist Peter Bruegel – the event takes place on a second plan and the main idea and theme is structured from small details of a landscape. He just shows the essence of things.