Islands tells the story of Tom, a one-time tennis pro who, years ago, washed up on a holiday island. Now he’s the coach at a hotel resort, hitting countless balls over the net to tourists who come to escape their everyday lives. Living an endless summer, Tom fills the emptiness inside with booze and brief affairs. He’s still kidding himself that he’s in paradise, but it is beginning to dawn on him that he’s wound up in hell. When he crosses paths with a particular tourist family, it seems he’s found an escape of his own.