Thanks to the indulgence of her patient husband, Dr. Bill Lintz (Robbie Coltrane), wealthy eccentric Trudy (Rene Russo) has already accumulated a large collection of wild animals by 1931 when she is introduced to Buddy, a sickly young gorilla. Trudy raises Buddy as her own child, dressing him in human clothes, and the ape responds with absolute obedience. But as Buddy grows older and larger, Trudy is unable to restrain him from turning increasingly violent.