Jens Christian er en strømlinet karrieredreng og nyudnævnt formand for Flygtningenævnet. Arbejdet er livets omdrejningspunkt og alt er godt, indtil en bortadopteret søn melder sin ankomst, og en usædvanlig vanskelig asylsag lander på skrivebordet. Pludselig er det ikke rigtige valg ikke soleklart for Jens Christian, der står splittet mellem forpligtelser og følelser.

Denmark, 1961. Bjørn, a middle-class boy in his early teens, wants to be accepted by Steen, a bullying peer of his with wealthy but freezingly cold parents. Bjørn's other good friend is Mulle, a cheerful and more childish working-class boy. All three seem friends at first, but gradually Steen starts pushing Mulle away while pulling the impressionable Bjørn with him towards more and more violence.