Gigot (Macy) is a mute war veteran who lost his vocal cords in a tragic car accident that killed his sister. Wracked by guilt and grief, Gigot cut all ties with his family to live a life of self-imposed exile as the superintendent for a rundown, inner-city tenement. After 28 years of emotional solitude, Gigot's lonely existence is shattered by the arrival of Lou (Keke Palmer), a spunky but troubled 12-year-old whose drug-addict mother has abandoned her.