Jack (Andrew Garfield) is released from prison, finally, at the age of 24; having been institutionalized for most of his life. He and another boy murdered a child, when they were themselves children. Under the fatherly mentor-ship of Terry (Peter Mullan) his parole contact and social worker, he experiences a coming of age, which would normally have happened years ago. The film follows Jack's attempts to readjust to the world outside of confinement and restart a life which never really got going.