Three Colors: White

In a bustling Paris divorce court, Karol Karol, a Polish barber, pleads with the judge through an interpreter. He learns that his wife, Dominique, no longer loves him due to the lack of intimacy in their marriage, resulting in the judge granting their divorce.

Dominique hands Karol a suitcase containing his belongings, coldly demonstrating her finality in ending their relationship. Stripped of his bank account, passport, and their shared salon, Karol is left alone and destitute.

Karol breaks into the salon he once shared with Dominique, seeking a place to stay. However, the next morning, Dominique discovers him, and despite a brief moment of intimacy, she confirms her emotional detachment, leading to further despair.

In a fit of rage over their deteriorating relationship, Dominique sets fire to the salon’s drapes, framing Karol for the act. This forces him into a life on the streets, living as a beggar in Paris.

While heartbroken, Karol starts performing songs with a comb in the Paris Métro, a makeshift way to cope with his situation. Here he meets Mikołaj, a fellow Pole, who introduces him to a world of unexpected choices.

Mikołaj proposes a job to Karol that involves killing someone who wishes to end their life. Although Karol declines, the conversation leads to him spying on Dominique, only to discover her with another man, deepening his despair.

Karol's return to Poland is facilitated by Mikołaj, who discreetly hides him in a suitcase. However, upon arrival, airport employees steal the suitcase, beat Karol, and abandon him in a dump, marking another betrayal.

After enduring hardship, Karol locates his brother Jurek in Warsaw. He finds solace in resuming work at Jurek's hair salon, seeking to rebuild his life amidst ongoing turbulence.

While working as a bodyguard at a cash exchange office, Karol uncovers his bosses' scheme to acquire land cheaply for development. He sees a chance to regain power and leverage against those who had wronged him.

Karol seeks out Mikołaj and accepts the killing job he previously rejected, leading to a fateful meeting. It is revealed that Mikołaj wants Karol to take his life, creating an intense moral dilemma for Karol.

In a moment of reckoning, Karol shoots a blank bullet into Mikołaj's chest to make him reconsider his decision. This act revives Mikołaj's will to live, reshaping their friendship into a deeper bond.

As Karol's relationship with Mikołaj grows, he starts accumulating wealth and mastering the French language. Driven by revenge against Dominique, he hatches an elaborate plan to stage his own death.

Karol stages his funeral with the intention of incriminating Dominique, watching her mourn from a distance. He later surprises her in her hotel room under the guise of reconciliation before slipping away unnoticed.

After his clever departure, Dominique is arrested on suspicion of murdering Karol for his fortune. This twist adds further complexity to Karol's revenge scheme as he watches the situation unfold.

In a poignant climax, Karol visits a prison complex and sees Dominique through her cell window. Through sign language, she expresses her desire to remarry him, stirring a whirlwind of emotions within Karol, leaving him in tears.