Meet Harold Grimsby, 42, a middle manager drowning in the quicksand of modern life. Between his 54-hour work weeks at Synergy Solutions Inc., his $3 million mortgage (thanks to a predatory loan), three screaming kids who barely know his name, and the constant threat of drone strikes in his war-torn suburb, Harold hasn't slept properly in seven years.
During the most important board meeting of his career – one that could save his job and stave off bankruptcy – Harold's stress-ravaged digestive system betrays him. What starts as a barely audible squeaker escalates into a 12-second symphony that shatters windows, sets off car alarms, and allegedly violates three international treaties on chemical warfare.
The incident goes viral. #FartGate trends worldwide. Harold is fired, divorced, and somehow charged with "aggravated atmospheric assault" under a bizarre new law designed to prosecute corporate polluters.
Enter Paradise Correctional Facility, where Harold discovers what he's been missing his entire adult life: three gourmet meals a day (prepared by a former Michelin-starred chef doing time for tax evasion), a comfortable bed, fascinating cellmates (including a philosophy professor, a retired circus performer, and a surprisingly gentle bank robber who teaches watercolor painting), unlimited books, high-speed internet, and – most shocking of all – time to think.
Between mandatory meditation sessions with a zen master doing life for embezzlement and outdoor recreation periods where inmates tend to an award-winning vegetable garden, Harold begins to bloom. He learns to play chess, writes poetry, and for the first time in decades, laughs until his stomach hurts (from joy, not stress ulcers).
The comedy escalates when Harold's former life keeps trying to drag him back. His ex-wife demands he return to pay alimony. His old boss begs him to come back and "make it rain" in the conference room again (the stock price inexplicably soared after the incident). The government wants to weaponize his digestive abilities.
But Harold has found something precious in his cell: peace, purpose, and the revolutionary realization that sometimes the bars that keep you in are the same ones that keep the madness out.
As his release date approaches, Harold faces the ultimate question: return to the "freedom" of modern slavery, or find a way to extend his stay in paradise?