This is the story about two women who are trapped by a past that won't let go. As Maj-Britt festers malevolently in her hermetic apartment, appeased only by an endless supply of food, Monika works ceaselessly to blot out her pain, punishing herself unforgivingly if she fails to meet her own high standards. They have nothing in common but the determination to obliterate their memories and be left alone - but when a letter and a tragic accident force the past back to life, the emotional void at the centre of their lives gapes wide and threatens to engulf them both. Forced into a confrontation, each woman proves the catalyst for the other's destruction - or salvation. A taut psychological thriller, "Shame" builds inexorably and subtly into a study of the devastating powers of fear, oppressive religion and forbidden sexuality.