Vito has a fatal heart attack as he is exiting the front gate of his stately home. Upon death his mom confronts him, making it clear, via a lengthy diatribe, that his existence was one of the material realm of sensual gratification - money, power, status and pleasure seeking- rather than that which is transcendent, thus he has been condemned to eternal death. Eventually we discover that this death experience was a dream, which greatly unsettled Vito, precipitating him to seek the truth relative to life's purpose, and the afterlife. Vto has periods of contemplation and dialogue with the housekeeper, barber, gardener, and his wife in search of answers - Is there such a place as heaven? Does Hell exist? Am I a good person? etc. Vito's soul searching includes a flashback to his youth listening to his grandfather speaking to him about eternity.
