in england, daniel (matthew macfadyen) and his wife jane (keeley hawes) live with his parents, while daniel's brother robert (rupert graves) is a renowned novelist living in new york city. the story begins on the day of their father's funeral. robert arrives, having flown first class, but declines to help finance the funeral, leaving daniel to cover all the expenses. as guests begin to arrive, daniel struggles to complete a eulogy, even though everyone expects robert will be the one to deliver it.