Kumiko is a lonely, withdrawn Japanese woman seeking adventure. She loathes her job and her mother calls often, nagging at her for still being single. After discovering an old VHS tape of Fargo, Kumiko (Rinko Kikuchi) spends hours watching and re-watching it in her small Tokyo flat and convinces herself that the briefcase of money Steve Buscemi’s character buries in North Dakota is actually real. With her hand-sewn maps and a fresh DVD in hand, she sets out to America on a quest for mythical treasure.