The Roads Not Taken

Leo's slumber is interrupted by the insistent ringing of the phone and the persistent buzzing of the doorbell, but he remains oblivious to the commotion outside his bedroom. His daughter Molly eventually arrives, only to be met with Leo's confusion and incoherence as he struggles to come to terms with the world around him. As his caretaker Xenia goes about her daily routine, vacuuming the floor, Leo's dementia renders him increasingly disoriented.

As they navigate their way through the day, Leo and Molly's outing to the dentist ends in disaster when Leo fails to comply with the dentist's instructions, resulting in a rather... unfortunate incident. Undeterred, Molly tries again, this time managing to get her father into another taxi, only for Leo to become lost in his own world once more. His confusion leads him to stumble out of the passenger door, hitting his head in the process. The taxi driver, sensing something is amiss, calls an ambulance, and Leo is whisked away to the emergency room.

Once discharged, Molly takes her father on another excursion, this time to Costco, where Leo's wanderlust gets the better of him. He disappears while Molly attends to a work call, only to reappear clutching a dog he believes is Néstor, his dearly departed canine companion. A woman accuses Leo of trying to steal her own pooch, and things escalate quickly, with security getting involved. After Molly explains her father's medical condition, the guards release him, albeit a bit worse for wear.

Their next stop is the optometrist, where Leo again struggles to follow instructions, much to Molly's frustration. Later that night, as she receives a devastating call from her boss, informing her that her project has been hijacked by someone else, Molly realizes she can no longer continue the charade. As the night wears on, Leo slips out of his apartment and embarks on a solo adventure, roaming the streets barefoot as Molly frantically searches for him. Eventually, two kindly taxi drivers come to his rescue.

At home, Dolores pleads with Leo to get out of bed and prepare himself for the day ahead. In the kitchen, he stumbles upon her preparing a bouquet of arranged flowers before driving off in their truck. Enraged by the sudden departure, Leo gives chase, only to find himself lost on a desert road after exiting the vehicle in a state of disorientation. Dolores drives off, leaving Leo to his own devices. He responds by hitching a ride into town on the back of a maize truck, ready for whatever the day may bring.

As the veil of night descends upon the local cemetery, Leo stumbles upon a vibrant Day of the Dead celebration, guided by the ethereal presence of Dolores. At the grave of their deceased son, Néstor, Leo's emotional dam bursts, and he pours out his grief, self-accusing blame for the tragic loss. As tears stream down his face, Dolores offers a consoling embrace, their shared sorrow and longing to have their son back creating a poignant tableau.

The following day, Leo seeks solace at Mikael's tavern by the sea, where he strikes up a conversation with Anni, a charming German tourist whose resemblance to his daughter serves as a bittersweet reminder of his life left behind. As they engage in an animated discussion about Leo's unfinished novel – a poignant tale of a man torn between the comfort of home and the allure of exile – his creative fervor becomes increasingly all-consuming. Anni's friends, though patient, begin to show signs of exasperation at Leo's intense interest in their opinions on his work.

That night, Anni and her companions board a lively party cruise, which Leo secretly follows from his rowboat into the open sea. As he exhausts himself trying to catch up with the vessel, it ultimately leaves him behind, casting him adrift in the darkness. The next morning, a group of fishermen discovers Leo's lifeless form in his boat and meticulously searches for identification.

As the police deliver Leo to Molly's doorstep, she gently takes him back to their apartment, where he begins to recount the parallel stories that seem to be unfolding alongside his own life. These include his youthful marriage in Mexico and his unexpected demise in Greece. Molly, with a mixture of compassion and empathy, reveals to Leo that he was once married to Dolores before emigrating to the United States and later returned after realizing the gravity of his mistake. As Leo lies in bed, Molly vows to remain by his side, while in a parallel universe, a duplicate Molly packs her belongings and departs from their apartment with an air of resignation.