The adventures, fortunes and misfortunes of resourceful peasant Juan Quin Quin - in turns bullfighter, guerrilla fighter and sacristan - who never resigns himself to his fate. Set against the backdrop of 1950s Cuba and steeped in the island's countryside traditions, this comedy is considered the first successful Cuban experimental film.

On December 31, 1958, a detective investigates the theft of a painting from the home of a wealthy widow in Havana. The relationship between the two, amid investigations and danzones, reveals the history of the house and the family. The arrival of the bearded men in Havana changes the course of events.