A despairing man murders his wife and his son on New Year's Eve before surrendering to the police. Placed in the custody of sexually abusive relatives, his only surviving child Vito is left free to roam the trash-strewn back streets of Naples where he and his friends engage in drug abuse, prostitution and petty crime.

An ageing couple, Papa Martin and his wife Genovieffa, live modestly while their son Armando and goddaughter Amelia complete their studies away from home. When the young pair return to celebrate Armando’s law degree, a debt collector exposes that his qualification is forged and demands repayment. To protect his son’s honour, Papa Martin sacrifices his own comfort, returning to work and sending Armando away to start anew. As time passes, the family’s love, guilt, and redemption intertwine in a heartfelt story of sacrifice and moral reckoning.