Nurse Mildred Ratched seeks employment at Lucia State Hospital as it prepares to admit a new psychiatric patient: notorious killer Edmund Tolleson.

Ratched helps Edmund find an outlet for his urges and offers her services to Wainwright. Tired of living a lie, Gwendolyn leaves her husband.

One month later, Ratched fights to save Edmund from the electric chair while dreaming of a new life with Gwendolyn.