Shakespeare once said, "what tangled webs we weave", and this is the through-line of On the Fringe of Wild. Peter is a young gay man whose father is trying to make a man of him by taking him camping. He is also a talented artist who uses drawing to escape his life and hopes to get into a prestigious art school. He is being bullied by almost everyone at school, especially the popular boy Miles, who himself is closeted and using a tough guy image and a girlfriend on his arm as his defense from being found out. Miles is having a secret affair with Jack, a very insecure young man living in constant fear of his very violent and abusive alcoholic father. When Jack and Peter each escape their living situations, a chance encounter will change their lives forever as the two set up a temporary home free of the bigotry and violence they have endured. As they become close and try to be their authentic selves, Jack can no longer take the forces that are trying to tear them apart, leading to an ending that is incredibly difficult to accept but all too often a reality for many LGBTQ+ youth.
八公（Forest 饰）是一条谜一样的犬，因为没有人知道它从哪里来。教授帕克（理查·基尔 Richard Gere 饰）在小镇的火车站拣到一只走失的小狗，冥冥中似乎注定小狗和帕克教授有着某种缘分，帕克一抱起这只小狗就再也放不下来，最终，帕克对小狗八公的疼爱感化了起初极力反对养狗的妻子卡特（琼·艾伦 Joan Allen 饰）。八公在帕克的呵护下慢慢长大，帕克上班时八公会一直把他送到车站，下班时八公也会早早便爬在车站等候，八公的忠诚让小镇的人家对它更加疼爱。有一天，八公在帕克要上班时表现异常，居然玩起了以往
