During the Cold War, a local Polish officer and a young Soviet woman wedded to a Soviet officer are drawn together by music.

The film presents the story of Robert - an aging, once-recognized artist who is today struggling with his own complexes and vices, and helplessness towards a new reality that ruthlessly throws him to the margins of existence. One day Robert finds himself in a roadside ditch hit by a dog's car. In a reflex of spontaneous compassion, he takes the dog home and begins to look after him.