In 1890, the year of the U.S. census, chaos erupts when a stranger named Strindler arrives in a small town in Arizona and requests money for providing the names of dead Mexican laborers. Adapted from the novel by Nikolai Gogol.

This film covers the early history of post World War II educational films, especially those involving traffic safety by the Highway Safety Foundation under direction of Richard Wayman. In the name of promoting safe driving in teenagers, these films became notorious for their gory depiction of accidents to shock their audiences to make their point. The film also covers the role of safety films of this era, their effect on North American teenage culture, the struggle between idealism and lurid exploitation and how they reflected the larger society concerns of the time that adults projected onto their youth.

The bold comedy-drama tells the story of a wealthy New York City teenager who, eager to impress his activist crush, follows an online connection to Texas where he believes he can stop an act of extreme violence. Anchored by a transformative performance from Asa Butterfield, the film also stars Jaeden Martell, Chris Bauer, Jennifer Ehle, Anna Baryshnikov, Noah Centineo, Becky Ann Baker, Avan Jogia and Pippa Knowles.