Bill Baker, played by Matt Damon, is a hardworking man from Oklahoma who has lived a rough but honest life as an oil-rig roughneck. After hearing that his daughter, Allison, played by Abigail Breslin, is in prison on charges of murdering her lover, Bill travels to Marseille, France, to try and help her clear her name.
Upon arriving in France, Bill discovers that the cultural differences, language barriers, and laws are vastly different from what he is accustomed to in Oklahoma. Adding to this, Allison refuses to speak to him, and her defense lawyer, played by Camille Cottin, is skeptical of Bill's abilities to help.
Determined to prove his daughter's innocence, Bill begins to investigate the case on his own, visiting the places where the crime occurred and speaking to the people who knew her lover. Along the way, he meets a single mother named Virginie, played by Cottin, and her young daughter, Maya, played by Lilou Siauvaud, who become part of his makeshift family in France.
As Bill delves deeper into the case, he uncovers new evidence that challenges his daughter's guilt. However, his staunch American values clash with the French legal system's intricacies, and he must navigate through the system and the cultural divide to prove his daughter's innocence.
Stillwater is a tense and suspenseful drama that explores the lengths a father will go to protect his daughter, even if it means sacrificing his life and starting anew in a foreign land. Directed by Tom McCarthy, the film is a poignant and timely commentary on the human condition and the lengths we go to find justice and redemption.
