Samuel, a violent pastor, lives with his wife Agnès and his stepdaughter Cynthia, subjecting them to a life of misery through his contempt and brutality. Agnès, regularly insulted and beaten by Samuel, suffers in silence. Cynthia, however, refuses to comply with Samuel's demands, particularly his insistence on attending church, despite her mother's concerns. In private, Cynthia tortures herself physically, seeking to feel her mother's pain and to give a tangible form to her stepfather's narcissistic perversion.
