Countess Elena, Elda Tattoli, is a striking middle-aged matriarch within the Gordini Malvezzi, a family deeply rooted in the Romagna gentry. The household centers on three siblings — Elena, Vittorio, and Camillo — each navigating a different path through a web of tradition, money, and desire. Elena exerts a calm, indulgent influence, savoring moments of intimacy with local men while remaining wary that many are after her fortune rather than her companionship. Her presence anchors the family’s social standing, even as her choices ripple through the lives of those around her.
Count Vittorio, Glauco Mauri, is a secularist professor whose attempts to build a political career have so far yielded little fruit. He embodies the rational, modern side of the family’s conflict: a man educated in ideas but hampered by self-doubt and a cautious temperament. His struggle to convert his beliefs into real political traction sits at the heart of the family’s tension, especially as his ambitions pull him toward alliances that could reshape his status and future.
Camillo, Pierluigi Aprà, is seventeen and still in seminary, a figure torn between the weight of aristocratic heritage and the discipline of Catholic upbringing. He finds symbolic rebellion in a hardline Maoist stance, presenting a stark contrast to the more conventional paths of his elders. Camillo’s restlessness hints at a wider discontent with the old social order and foreshadows the clash between tradition and radical reform that characterizes the family’s story.
Vittorio’s heart leads him toward Giovanna, a pragmatic accountant-secretary who sees him with a mixture of sympathy and weariness. Daniela Surina brings Giovanna to life as someone who values clarity and agency, and her rejection of Vittorio’s meek, restrained manner pushes him toward a more practical, somber realization of his own limitations. In Giovanna’s orbit, Carlo enters the picture—a young, ambitious accountant who also serves as the treasurer of the local Unified Socialist Party branch. Paolo Graziosi portrays Carlo as a drive-driven operator with plans that extend beyond personal affection to social ambition and strategic partnerships.
Carlo’s momentum inspires a calculated plan: he aims to marry into Elena’s wealth to consolidate power and influence within the gentry circle. Meanwhile, the party offers Vittorio a candidacy in the local administration elections, presenting a clear fork in the road between personal aspirations and political expediency. This offer intensifies the underlying triangles of affection and loyalty, weaving together money, status, and ideology in a way that could redefine the town’s future.
As the campaign unfolds, Vittorio makes a pivotal choice to step away from Camillo’s more revolutionary organization in favor of supporting his own political path. Camillo reacts with a quiet, methodical counter-move, turning his attention to undermining his brother’s campaign and aligning himself with a more disruptive course. The ensuing tension reveals a deeper rift within the Gordini Malvezzi clan, highlighting how personal desire, family duty, and political conviction collide under the pressure of ambition.
Throughout, the film remains attentive to the moral complexities of its characters, presenting a nuanced portrait of a family at the crossroads of aging tradition and emerging modern politics. The Romagna setting becomes a character in its own right, framing the ambitions and insecurities of each figure as they navigate loyalty, power, and the seductive pull of influence. The story unfolds with a restrained precision, keeping the focus on interpersonal dynamics while letting the broader social landscape inform every choice and consequence.
