The Children Are Watching Us

Pricò accompanies his mother to the local park, where he enjoys a puppet show. He spots Nina's marked attention to Roberto and senses trouble in the air as the romance begins to surface.

Back home, the family has dinner together while Pricò quietly processes the day. He ruminates on his mother's relationship and what it could mean for his family.

That night Nina slips away with the stranger Roberto, leaving Andrea to grapple with the sudden empty home. Pricò senses his mother's absence but remains unaware of the full truth.

Neighbors spread rumors about Nina's disappearance, and it is eventually assumed she ran off with another man. After a few days she returns, and Andrea reluctantly agrees to let Pricò stay with his mother for now.

To distance itself from Roberto, Nina and Andrea take Pricò on a vacation to a nearby beach hotel. The trip initially offers a sense of reunion and normalcy as the family tries to rebuild some stability.

During the vacation, Andrea announces he must return for work and asks Nina to stay a few extra days with Pricò. The plan is to keep the boy close while the adults negotiate their tangled past.

Roberto unexpectedly appears at a hotel dance and pursues Nina again. She initially resists, but eventually yields, much to Pricò's dismay at his mother's wavering faith.

Out of heartbreak, Pricò runs away from the hotel scene. He is found and brought back by police officers, exposing the fragility of the family’s fragile peace.

Back in their hometown, Nina asks Pricò to go upstairs while she runs an errand, and he and his father realize the truth of her absence. The home atmosphere becomes strained once more as the truth sinks in.

Distressed by Nina's departure, Andrea enrolls Pricò in a boarding school. The separation deepens Pricò's sense of loss and marks a break in the family’s unity.

While Pricò is away at school, Andrea kills himself in despair. His death shatters the fragile hope of the family and leaves Pricò to confront a more complicated absence.

When Pricò is told of his father's death at the school, Nina and her maid are there to comfort him. Pricò, though young, understands the truth of his mother's actions and refuses to seek her comfort as he walks away, ending the film.