Earl Brooks is a successful businessman, husband and father, and he's pretty adept at serial killing too. Goaded on by his conscienceless alter-ego Marshall, wonderfully played by William Hurt, he stalks his victims and meticulously plans their murders, posturing the corpses and photographing them for posterity. However, when Earl finds himself entangled in the twisted agenda of an opportunistic bystander, as well as hunted by the unorthodox and tenacious Detective Atwood, he finds his carefully maintained control steadily slipping.