11-year-old Valentina Scalici as Rosetta and 9-year-old Giuseppe Ieracitano as Luciano live with their mother in the housing projects of Milan, two internal migrants from Sicily who face prejudice in their adopted city. Their mother is unemployed and their father has long since abandoned them. For the past two years, the mother has forced Rosetta into prostitution to survive. When authorities raid the dwelling, the mother and a client are arrested, and the children are slated to be sent to a Catholic orphanage in Civitavecchia, near Rome.
Two carabinieri, Enrico Lo Verso as Antonio and Fabio Alessandrini as Grignani, are assigned the thankless task of escorting the children by train. Grignani deserts Antonio in Bologna, leaving him to carry the burden alone. The siblings are unruly and often squabble, with Luciano sickly and reticent, while Rosetta is cynical, rebellious, and adept at manipulation. At the orphanage, the priest in charge (Agostino Zumbo as Sacerdote istituto) claims Rosetta’s medical file is missing, a pretext that Antonio suspects is tied to her past.
Desperate to protect the children, Antonio tries to contact Grignani for guidance, but Grignani offers little help. Ignoring proper orders, Antonio decides to improvise and take the children to another institute back in their native Sicily. The plan stalls when Luciano suffers an asthma attack on the way to the train station, forcing them to miss the train. They spend an awkward night at a carabiniere acquaintance’s bachelor pad, a moment that underlines the precariousness of their situation.
After a long train-and-coach journey, they arrive unannounced at Antonio’s sister’s home in Calabria, which doubles as a restaurant. There they celebrate a young girl’s First Communion. Antonio confesses to his family that Rosetta and Luciano are the children of a superior, and Rosetta is dressed in a stylish, age-appropriate summer dress to mingle with other girls. Luciano enjoys the warmth of Antonio’s grandmother, who gives him a photo of a six-year-old Antonio in a Zorro costume. Yet this fragile moment is shattered when a guest recognizes Rosetta from a tabloid article and reveals her past to the other guests. Humiliated, Rosetta darts outside while Antonio chases her down, offering quiet reassurance. That encounter marks a turning point for Antonio, who begins to feel genuine compassion for the siblings beyond a sense of duty.
With a renewed resolve, Antonio purchases an old Fiat 128 and moves to remove Rosetta and Luciano from Calabria, driving them to the ferry terminal at the Strait of Messina. On the ferry, he finally talks with Luciano, and instead of heading straight to the Gela orphanage, he takes a detour to a cheap hotel near Marina di Ragusa, where the three share adjoining rooms.
The following day, they visit the beach, and Antonio teaches Luciano to swim, deepening the bond between them. They meet two young French women who take a liking to Rosetta, and together they drive to Noto to visit the cathedral. A tourist hands Rosetta her camera, which is promptly snatched; Antonio pursues the thief and brings him to the local Carabiniere station. There, one tourist lightly confirms the family’s troubled past, and Rosetta overhears the word “prostitute,” which instantly dampens her affable mood. Antonio faces accusations of kidnapping, abuse, and failing to obey orders, and is forced to surrender his warrant card for a court-martial. After hours of uncertainty, they are all released.
Antonio drives the trio to Gela late at night, his silence a sign of concern for his career’s future. Near their destination, he parks at an abandoned block, where they fall asleep in the car. At dawn, the children wake and reflect on their prospects—what lies ahead for them in the orphanage and in a world that has already judged them so harshly.
