Jo (Anne Bancroft, in an Oscar-nominated performance) leaves the banality of her marriage to second husband to wed her screenwriter lover, Jake Armitage (Peter Finch), but insists her new husband adhere to her strict marital ideals. Though their relationship is passionate, Jo, now a mother of six, begins to feel stifled in her role as a doting homemaker - and increasingly isolated from Peter, who is filming on location in Morocco. Jo's sanity is shaken when it seems Peter is not being faithful.