At 92 years old, Madeleine decides to set the date and conditions of her death. By telling her daughter Diane and her son Pierre, she hopes to prepare them as gently as possible but it comes as a shock, and their minds are set ablaze. Until the end, Madeleine will keep her dignity, wits, and passion for life as a course of conduct, so she can give them all, and in particular Diane, a touching “final lesson”.
Amanda believes men are too complicated and has lost faith finding the perfect one. Her friend and a psychoanalyst have a plan how to make her fall in love. She insists that Amanda not stay home alone on New Year's Eve, and only gets her way after swearing that all the other guests will be couples, except for Maxime, a gay colleague. But Maxime leaves at the last minute to join his lover in Amsterdam, and Antoine, recently separated from his wife, arrives alone at the party.
