Off-beat drama from writer/director Rian Johnson, imitating the conventions of 1940s hardboiled film noir as a teenager investigates his ex-girlfriend's death in a small Southern Californian town. Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is an outsider at his high school, but when his ex-girlfriend Emily goes missing, he decides to investigate. Teaming up with The Brain (Matt O'Leary), Brendan gets close to Emily's group of eccentric and sinister friends. As he begins to suspect the figure known only as The Pin (Lukas Haas), Brendan insinuates himself into his inner circle. But will Brendan uncover truths about Emily, or more dangerous truths about himself?