A study in contrasts set in and around Havana that explores Cuba's 1959 revolution: a young woman's fascination with the excess of an American-owned casino leads to her downfall in the eyes of her street vendor boyfriend; a tenant farmer revolts the only way he knows how, attacking the land he works; university students gain first-hand knowledge of political upheaval; and, in the hills outside the city, the members of a poor peasant family are patriotically swept up into the burgeoning revolt.

The script is based on the novel "The Volunteer Teacher" by Laura Olemá. The story takes place in a camp for volunteer teachers who join a campaign to promote literacy. The film focuses on several young people and their constant confrontation with a reality that has little to do with the idealized ideals they aspired to.