Rocco and His Brothers

Rocco Parondi, after his father's death, leaves the poor rural town of Lucania with his widowed mother Rosaria and three brothers to seek a new life in the industrial north. They travel to Milan, hoping for better opportunities. The departure marks the family's first break from their old world.

The Parondis expect to stay with Vincenzo in Lambrate, but Vincenzo's fiancé Ginetta's family balks at the crowded, southern family. They end up in an unheated basement, adjusting to harsh urban conditions. The move tests their resilience from the very start.

Ginetta becomes pregnant and marries Vincenzo, enlarging the complicated family dynamic. The marriage isolates the younger brothers from their elder sister-in-law and mother, increasing the sense of displacement. The brothers must fend for themselves in a hostile environment.

Simone, the second brother, struggles to adapt to city life and is drawn to Nadia, a prostitute who pushes him toward boxing as a path to fame. His mother backs this plan, hoping for a quick lift out of poverty. The relationship marks the first major romantic entanglement in the new city.

Nadia manipulates Simone as their romance grows, but she later rejects him after returning jewelry he stole from Rocco's boss. The theft ties into a larger pattern of crime surrounding the family. Simone's trust in Nadia sours, foreshadowing trouble ahead.

Rocco is drafted into military service, enduring the rigors of enlistment. While nearing the end, he encounters Nadia, who has just left prison for prostitution. Her decision to pursue a relationship with him signals a potential path toward stability.

Nadia agrees to an exclusive relationship with Rocco, leaving her former life behind, drawn by his sincerity. Rocco's hopeful attachment contrasts with the precarious status of the rest of his family. The bond offers him a rare personal happiness within the family's strain.

Learning of Nadia's new relationship with Rocco, Simone retaliates with a violent assault, attacking Nadia and Rocco with a gang. Nadia is raped as part of this brutal act, a turning point that fractures the brothers' trust further. Rocco, torn between family loyalty and his own happiness, breaks things off with Nadia.

Rocco ends his relationship with Nadia and encourages her to return to Simone, hoping to protect his brother from the consequences. Nadia returns to Simone's orbit, yet this return is also a tactical move that might hasten Simone's downfall. The family remains divided as loyalties clash.

Ciro, the second youngest, attends night school and secures steady work at the Alfa Romeo factory. He begins a practical effort to lift the family into stability, even as tensions simmer at home. He becomes engaged to a local woman from a well-to-do family, signaling social advancement.

Rocco continually acts to protect his family, even at the cost of his own happiness. He returns the stolen jewelry to his employer, and later signs a ten-year boxing contract to settle Simone's debts, including money he was forced to steal. His sense of responsibility binds the brothers together, but it also creates new pressures.

During a championship bout, Rocco fights while Simone visits Nadia near Ponte della Ghisolfa and murders her after she reveals her hatred for him. The tragedy shatters the family's sense of safety and loyalty. Rocco wins the fight, but the death upends their celebratory mood.

After the victory, the family celebrates and Rocco expresses a wish to return to their home in Lucania. His mother longs for all her sons to be together again, highlighting the pull of family amid the violence and disruption. The moment underscores the paradox of happiness and sorrow coexisting.

A bloodied Simone interrupts the celebration and confesses to Nadia's murder. Ciro rejects aiding him and leaves to alert the police, choosing justice over family complicity. The phone call to the authorities fractures the siblings' alliance and sets an irreversible course.

The youngest brother Luca mostly observes the unfolding events, hoping to return south with Rocco. He visits Ciro at work to share his plan, and Ciro hints that Luca might find a better life due to the changes. Luca then sees an article about Rocco's upcoming fights, foreshadowing the wider world that awaits him.