Victor Van Dort, the son of wealthy fish merchants, and Victoria Everglot, the neglected daughter of impoverished aristocrats, prepare for their arranged marriage, which will simultaneously raise the social class of Victor's parents and restore the wealth of Victoria's family. Although both fall in love for each other, the shy Victor ruins their wedding rehearsal by forgetting his vows. Fleeing to a nearby forest in embarrassment, he practices his wedding vows with a tree, and places his wedding ring on a root. However, the root transpires to be the finger of a dead woman named Emily, who rises from the grave as a zombie claiming that she is now Victor's wife, and spirits him away to the Land of the Dead. During his time with her, Victor learns that Emily was murdered years ago by an unknown perpetrator on the night she secretly eloped with him. Desperate to reunite with Victoria, Victor tricks Emily into wanting to have her meet his parents in the Land of the Living.
