[2] The film follows a narcissistic, young woman[3] from New Jersey who comes to New York City to join the waning punk subculture, only to find that she's gravitated towards Los Angeles; in order to pay her way across country, she engages in a number of parasitic relationships, shifting her allegiances to new "friends" in an ongoing effort to ultimately endear herself to someone who will finance her desired lifestyle.

Wren is a runaway from New Jersey who has come to New York City in the hopes of becoming a figure in the punk rock scene, only to find that the movement is now centered in Los Angeles.

Wren finds herself relegated to sneaking into the city's remaining punk hot spot, the Peppermint Lounge, to ingratiate herself with the bands that play there, in the hopes that one of them will take her on as a groupie.

Although she works part-time at a Xerox shop by day, Wren nominally uses her position there surreptitiously to print her fliers, and she supplements her lifestyle by mugging women in the subway.

Wren runs across Paul, a young man from Montana in the middle of a road trip who has briefly taken up residence in the city before heading to New Hampshire.

Confronting the nameless, blonde woman in the stairwell, Wren learns that she is Eric's wife and that he has a history of picking up vulnerable women to exploit for his own financial gain.

[7] Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote "Smithereens gets off to a fast start, thanks to Susan Berman's feisty performance and the vitality with which her story is told...Although willful inactivity seems a crucial part of the characters' way of life, it's carried too far; everyone here stays put a little longer than is believable, particularly Paul, who remains parked by the highway for what feels like weeks, with nothing to do but wait for Wren to appear.

"[8] Dave Kehr of the Chicago Reader wrote "Wren, in her self-delusion, manipulativeness, and superficiality, easily ranks as one of the most obnoxious characters in film history, and she exerts a strange fascination.