Naples, 1959. Pure Mathematics professor Renato Caccioppoli, Bakunin's grandson, is a tortured soul. Recently discharged from the psychiatric hospital, left by his wife, and increasingly disillusioned with academia and the Communist Party, he lives his last days with painful detachment.

A young poet falls in love with a sophisticated woman who hates poetry. But the poet wants to win her with poetry — and a bit of help from his mum.

Physical laws and human relations. In Terni (in the center of Italy), during a hot summer, Matteo, 30-years old with a degree in physics but unemployed gives private lessons to Elsa and Giulio. The three of them soon become friends but Matteo and Giulio also become love rivals.