In 1969, Shirley MacLaine's character Pearl Berman navigates her grief after the funeral of her husband Jack, surrounded by a household filled with eccentric relatives, including her daughters Bibby (Kathy Bates) and Norma (Marcia Gay Harden). Enter Joe Meledandri (Marcello Mastroianni), an Italian friend who years ago convinced Pearl's wayward husband to return home. As Joe makes his move to seduce Pearl, he must overcome family objections to religious differences and accept her daughters, including the lonely and overweight Bibby, and the pretty but psychologically unstable Norma.