Claudia Cardinale is Popsy, who double-crosses her older partner Silva (Stanley Baker). Silva has arranged to divert diamonds from a large corporate-run diamond mine in the South American jungle, and Popsy does her “pop” wrong as they are both pursued by police.

Trino, Nerio, and Alfonso are poor chamber musicians trying to survive by playing wherever they can. During a general's funeral, the musicians try to play funeral music, but the screams of one of them, who thinks he's seen the deceased's hand move, cause such a commotion that the participants run away in terror.