Jan is reluctant to acknowledge the affair he is having with Alma, who makes a stand by secretly setting off on a journey with his young son Juri. The runaways accept a lift with the delivery driver Bruno, who recognizes the outsider in Alma and wants her to see him in the same light. When they stop at a service station, he makes a clumsy attempt to get closer to her. In rebuffing Bruno, Alma unwittingly hurts his feelings to the extent that he discards every inhibition. His desire had been prompted more by aimless hope than expectation, but now he resolves to take what he is being denied. What follows is a nightmare. When Jan shows up at the service station, there is no sign of Alma or Juri. Only Bruno is there.
Part family drama and part thriller, Detour transforms an emotional tale into an existential story.
