In the summer after he finishes high school, Frankie Griffin (Jared Leto) nervously awaits the results of his college entrance examinations, positive he's failed, while he struggles to get through a long season full of challenges. Over the summer months, he deals with his mother's (Catherine O'Hara) and father's (Gabriel Byrne) high expectations, admires two teenage girls from afar, plans the perfect party, and fights off unwanted attention from an American tourist (Christina Ricci).