 Four generations of Oppenheim men gather in Paris for Isaac s 90th birthday. He s "Romeo," still a lady s man, waiting to hear from a woman to whom he has proposed, threatening suicide if she says no. They gather at Isaac s grandson s, Ben, who lives with Peggy and their son Mathias who s 10. Joining them, from Israel, is Isaac s son Elie. Against a backdrop of Elie s attempts to call his ex-wife, Ben and Peggy s marital difficulties, Mathias s budding sexuality, everyone s love of chess and practical jokes, Ben s house (shifting dangerously on its foundation), and the twentieth-century struggles of the Jews, the film explores their relationships and Isaac s aging.