중년의 호텔 하녀가 뒤늦게 찾은 체스 게임에 빠져 자기 계발을 하게 된다는 이야기.

In a small Corsican village, the life of Hlne, ordinary and single, She works as a maid in a hotel and is married happily with her Husband Ange and her fifteen year-old daughter. Her modest and monotonous life seems to be predetermined… One day while cleaning a hotel room, she meets a young, seductive, American couple which is playing a game of chess. First fascinated and then passionate about the game, Hlne learns with great tenacity she studies the rule of the game to perfection. She can count on Dr. Krger, who is a mysterious inhabitant, to help her to achieve her goals. But this positive transition towards a liberty for Hlne does not go about without deeply changing her relationship with family, friends and inhabitants of the village.