Vabank

Henryk Kwinto is released from prison after six years and returns to his Warsaw home. He finds his wife has already replaced him with Commissioner Karelicki. He discreetly retrieves a hidden roll of banknotes from the chair leg, places his key on the table, and leaves to begin anew.

Near the city gates, two younger petty criminals, Moks and Nuta, try to recruit the famous safe-cracker after their jewel store robbery. Kwinto pretends to be a musician, flashing a trumpet mouthpiece to deflect their interest. They give him the address of their automobile shop should 'Mr Musician' want to jam together.

Kwinto rents a hotel room where his former partner, Gustaw Kramer, now a successful banker, visits. Kramer explains that Kwinto was trapped six years earlier when he was caught in the act and betrayed, receiving 45,000 złoty as compensation. Kwinto warns not to reveal his bank's address and hears Kramer mutter 'ear of a herring' about the bank's invulnerability.

Kwinto visits Tadeusz Rychliński's widow, Marta, to learn about his old friend. She explains that Tadeusz deposited 19,000 zł in Kramer’s bank, but the receipt was stolen and the funds became unrecoverable. The next day Tadeusz apparently threw himself from a window, and the police ruled it a suicide.

To honor his friend's memory, Marta gives Kwinto Tadeusz's trumpet. Inside the mouthpiece, Kwinto finds a note from Rychliński saying 'I know how Kramer became an owner of the bank.' This discovery convinces Kwinto that Kramer engineered both the robbery and the staged suicide.

Kwinto declares a personal war on Kramer and begins assembling a plan. He sends Moks and Nuta to locate his old friend Duńczyk, who has tried to leave crime for peace. They later witness Krempitsch, a killer hired by Kramer, attempt to kill Kwinto and a stranger is killed instead, prompting Duńczyk to join.

Duńczyk initially refuses to return to crime, but Kwinto persuades him that taking vengeance is a matter of principle. The men witness Krempitsch's murder attempt at a football stadium, which convinces Duńczyk to join the plan.

Kwinto unveils the plan to rob Kramer’s bank and has Duńczyk reconnoiter the bank, studying alarm features in his workshop. Duńczyk analyzes the layout and devises a plate that can block the alarm.

On the night of the robbery, the group enters the bank through a ventilation shaft, disables the alarm with a plate from a necklace clasp, and seizes the money and valuables from the vault. Nuta uses a thermal lance to cut through a side wall as Moks and the others move the loot. They leave the necklace plate at the scene and transport the main valuables to Kramer’s house.

That evening, the group celebrates their success and divides the remaining money. Natalia, Moks's fiancée, is involved, and Kwinto sends a portion to Marta as compensation to Tadeusz's family. The operation seems to have gone as planned.

The next morning, police swarm the bank. Commissioner Przygoda notes that the safe was opened in the ordinary way, and fingerprints on the necklace plate point to Kramer. Investigators search Kramer’s house and recover stolen valuables from a basket of dirty laundry.

Kramer attempts to establish an alibi by directing investigators to Natalia’s apartment, but witnesses deny ever seeing him and recall a black man with a Dalmatian. The lack of solid proof complicates his defense and deepens the mystery around the robbery.

Kramer is arrested. Near the court building, Kwinto reads a newspaper and recognizes him; he glances at Kramer and subtly touches his ear, recalling the boast about the 'ear from a herring'. The confrontation seals Kramer’s downfall for the moment.

The film closes by hinting at a sequel, Vabank II (1984). It leaves Kramer in custody while Kwinto remains an imposing, calculating adversary ready for further challenges.