Four hoarders talk about their inability to throw things away.

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Bernese director Ulrich Grossenbacher's documentary about four hoarders ("messies" in German, from the English word mess), who can't throw anything away. In Elmira's apartment, boxes and newspapers are piled to the ceiling.The wife of Karl, a flea market trader, is suffocating at home. But he not only has their home stuffed with things, he's secretly renting barns to stash even more of his collection. And then there's Thomas, a scrap metal dealer, who collects broken engines to make strange machines out of them. Finally, Arthur has a yard full of rusting tractors and bulldozers and a mailbox stuffed with notices from the local government to clean them up.

Saving things "just in case" may be a good thing, but drowning in stuff that's not really any use is another matter. The difference between the two is the suffering brought on by the isolation created by hoarding. In need of urgent help, these people hurt not only themselves, but also those closest to them. A documentary for everyone, from anal-retentive organizers to compulsive collectors.