In the narrow kitchen of a family home, two women in their fourties are chatting. Out of the blue, one of them kisses the other. But after their intimate moment, the reality of their lives kicks in. Both women are married, in fact one to the other's brother.

Coelio desperately tries to win the heart of Marianne, the wife of Judge Claudio. On a bridge, he wants to commit suicide, but he runs into his friend Octave, who is returning from a carnival - drunk as usual. Octave agrees to act as matchmaker for Coelio.