An entire social microcosm lies hidden in plain sight in a decrepit Athenian courtyard of a humble mid-1960s neighbourhood. Love, desire, and deceit are all vital components of this little machine; nevertheless, is dreaming for everyone?

One of nine sons, Konstantis, convinces his mother to arrange the marriage of his only sister, Areti, to a stranger and swears on the Bible that he will go himself and fetch her if she is ever needed. When all nine sons succumb to an epidemic, leaving their mother alone, she curses Konstantis, who rises from his grave to find his sister and bring her back to the family home. Now thought to be a lost movie.

Reserve Second Lieutenant Christos Kladis is absent without leave from his unit when he learns that his girlfriend has become engaged to someone else. At the court martial, he refuses to explain himself and is sentenced to dismissal from the army and two years' imprisonment. His father, a retired officer, disowns him. After his release from prison, Christos changes his name and leaves to work as a sailor on ships under the name Grigoris Staridis. When war is declared, he returns to Greece and fights on the front lines.

Stavros finishes his military service, rents a small room in Mrs. Olympia's house, and, with the help of a friend, finds a job. However, Stavros cannot tell lies, and this will cost him three consecutive dismissals from the jobs he tries to do. At the same time, he falls in love with a blind girl, whom he will help regain her sight with the help of a surgeon. The couple will set up their own puppet theater, providing entertainment for children.

Reluctantly, an otherwise honest paterfamilias accepts his shady friend's proposition to start a career in crime. Now, his daughter is in love with the son of a wealthy target. Will the kind robber renounce his former self for her sake?