In 1475 when Stephen the Great, ruler of Moldavia is facing an invading Ottoman army of 120 000 men, the fate of Christian Europe largely depends on the battle's outcome.

Bad luck and bad judgment follow two generations of men in this Rumanian tragedy, set in the World War II era. Ion (Dan Nutu) seeks to find out why many years ago his father was falsely accused of being a communist, an accusation which led to his execution. He discovers that his father's mistress, now married to a wealthy man, made the accusation for money, as she was deathly afraid of poverty. Ion's own girlfriend seems to be similarly concerned about issues of livelihood, and abandons him for a richer suitor. Frustrated and angry, he burns down these couple's houses and takes up with some anti-communist arms smugglers.

The wife of a sea captain has a tough time being alone without her husband which is in a long trip.

In 18th-century Transylvania, peasants rise against oppressive nobles under the leadership of Horea, Cloșca, and Crișan. Hoping for justice, Horea seeks support from Emperor Joseph II, but as tensions grow, the rebellion turns into a harsh struggle for freedom and survival.

Mitrea Kocor, a young butler, gives up his work in the fields to join Antonescu's Romanian army, which fought alongside Nazi forces during World War II. After spending time in Soviet captivity and a prisoner-of-war camp, he returns to his home village to participate in post-war reconstruction.

In his struggle to innovate in an industrial plant, Professor Oltenu discovers, through laboratory research, a new technique that could be very useful in turning iron ore into better steel and products made from it. His experiments don't always yield the best results, especially when he is "helped" in his endeavors by a saboteur. The professor's wife and one of his employees help expose the saboteur and convince the professor to continue his work. Eventually the saboteurs are caught and severely punished, and the professor's research is patented and turned into successful manufacturing nanotechnology.

The story of three generations of the Dorobantsu peasant family, who fought bravely and selflessly against the oppressors of their homeland. The viewer sees the people who took an active part in the peasant uprisings of 1907 and their descendants who won the war against fascism.