Writer/director Sophie Barthes crafts this metaphysical tragicomedy that straddles the line between reality and fantasy set in a world where souls are extracted from humans and traded as commodity. Paul Giamatti is an anxious New Yorker who finds the answer to his deep-rooted malaise after stumbling upon an article about a high-tech company that claims to have found a solution to human suffering. By deep-freezing souls, claims the company, they can give their customers a life free from fear, doubt, and worry. Eager to free himself from the emotional burden of angst, Giamatti eagerly enlists their services. Troubles arises, however, when Giamatti's soul is swiped by a soul-trafficking "mule" who in turn gives it to a no-talent Russian soap-opera actress. Now in order to get back the soul that is rightfully his, Giamatti must make the arduous trip to St. Petersberg, along the way discovering that the true key to happiness isn't the absence of pain, the ability to experience the entire spectrum of emotion and cherish the things that really matter.