An exploration of the Oedipal theme--of fate versus individual choice--which is based on a true story of a Freudian psychoanalyst in turn-of-the-century Vienna who detects homicidal tendencies in her five-year-old nephew and is eventually killed by him. Actress Catherine Deneuve plays both the Aunt Jeanne and Solange, the lawyer who eventually represents the now-grown nephew, Rene. As Solange begins to investigate the complex relationship between Rene and his victim, her life and identity become merged with that of her her client, and her destiny is ultimately transformed.