Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins), a methodical structural engineer, plans a systematic way to kill his younger wife, Jennifer (Embeth Davidtz), when he discovers that she is having an affair with a police negotiator. Crawford has logically figured a way to kill his wife and involve hostage negotiator Detective Rob Nunally (Billy Burke) into his plan. After Crawford shoots his wife, the police arrive and he allows only the negotiator, Detective Nunally, to enter the house. Crawford admits to shooting his wife and that she is lying on the floor in the other room. Detective Nunally checks Jennifer out to see if she is still alive, and then he recognizes that she is his lover. Jennifer was shot in the head, but she is not dead. Detective Nunally is able to overpower Crawford and put him under arrest. Crawford is arraigned and wants an immediate trial, acting as his own lawyer. With a signed confession and the gun, the Assistant District Attorney Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling) believes he has a slam-dunk case and agrees to go to trial. What Beachum thought was a perfectly simple case ends up being a battle of wits and a psychological fight that takes him to his breaking point.