A young woman named Helen begins dating an attractive man (Johnathan Schaech) who grew up on a southern horse farm. They visit his mother Martha (Jessica Lange) on the farm and everything seems to go well. However, she watches them having sex. The couple returns to New York and gets married. Helen becomes pregnant. One night she is attacked by an man who steals her locket. The couple is convinced by Martha to move back to the farm. Martha does everything she can to cause problems for the couple. Helen visits Alice, her husband's father's mother in a nursing home and finds that what he has been told about his father's death is incorrect. The man goes away to a horse event and Martha injects Helen with a horse drug that starts her labor. she attempts to escape and finds her locket showing that Martha was behind her attack. She runs away and makes it to the road only to be intercepted by Martha. Helen gives birth to a boy. Martha is just about to kill her with something in a syringe when Helen's husband comes home. Martha tries again in the middle of the night but finds her son sitting by Helen's bed. The next morning Helen confronts Martha with evidence that she killed her husband. Helen discloses how she was treated and the couple leave Martha. Helen's husband tells her he never wants to see her again and he is selling the farm. They take the baby to Alice and the movie ends.