The night before her wedding, a nervous bride examines her gifts and picks out a book of romantic short stories. Hoping to while away the evening, she settles on the couch and begins reading "La grande Bretêche" by Honoré de Balzac.

Olle works as maître d' and hopes to buy a hotel with money he borrowed. When his creditor dies Olle gets tricked by his lawyer and has to pay back 50,000 crowns in eight days. In order to pay the money he answers the ads in the newspaper looking for a maid.

One summer day, two teens begin a reckless affair and abandon their families to be with one another.

The four wives of four brothers share stories of their marriages as they wait for their husbands in a small, secluded cottage.

After fifteen years of marriage and mutual infidelity, a couple on the brink of divorce unexpectedly confront their unresolved love during a journey to Copenhagen. Blending farce with emotional reflection, the film is Ingmar Bergman’s first sustained venture into marital comedy.