The story of Marx and Mercedes begins in a sleepy Southern Italian town. Marx is a young German trying to recuperate from his suicidal depression along the rocky cliffs of Apulia. He runs away from his problems and straight into the arms of the mysterious Russian beauty Mercedes, who’s more than happy to create new problems for him. She’s a vivid, visceral young woman with a deep loathing for boredom. The unlikely pair finds a strange fascination in one another and a game begins as each one spins a story about who they are, pushing the boundaries of truth and fiction, rewriting their own pasts according to their dreams. Reality begins to blur as they play their game out in the world, spiraling out of control until someone ends up dead …