Thomas Whitman is a 75-year-old former musician who has lapsed into a coma after years of suffering from Vascular dementia. As he is clinging to his life while his estranged daughter Gem ponders on signing a do not resuscitate order, Thomas' mind enters a fantasy world where he relives his life as a ten-year-old orphan. After meeting a girl named Ann at the orphanage and acquiring a snow globe containing a dancing figurine named "Arabesque", young Thomas befriends a snowman named "Mr. White", who takes him on a flight to the skies. But while chasing his father Theodore's airplane, Thomas loses his balance and falls into a surreal world bordered by a run-down roller coaster track, which represents his mind and memories. As pieces of the track fall apart, a mechanic, symbolic of Thomas' doctor in the real world, complains about how futile it is to try to repair the track. The doctor looks to a younger Gem for advice who says they should just let it fall apart; this coincides with Gem agreeing to the DNR order in the real world. Thomas meets a younger version of Gem and a 72-year-old Ann, who warn him about Mr. White. He runs to a "dollhouse", where he sees himself and Ann in their 30s, as members of his band Whitman. The elderly Ann once again appears in front of him, warning him that the snowman is evil and is responsible for the loss of his memories.