In an amalgamation of religion, vengeance and folk tales; Bergman drops us smack-dab in medieval Sweden. Max Von Sydow plays Töre, a prosperous patriarch whose daughter, Karin, gets raped and murdered when he sends her to deliver candles for their church. The men who partook in the hideous act unwittingly ask for shelter from Töre. Over the course of the night, he must decide what he needs to do next.

In a world with growing paganism, how much can faith provide comfort for a man in grief? Would vengeance help bring balance to a depraved act? Bergman gives us no simple answers. Just more questions.