The late 1970s. It's summer in a small provincial town. Twelve-year-old Piotrek has a very strong bond with his mother. While his father is away, his mother starts going out almost every night. Their simple and clear relationship starts to get complicated...
The film tells the story of Jerzy, a writer whose creativity has burnt out. His wife and their seven-year-old son Jasiek live far from the city. Jerzy’s enduring creative crisis and their related financial troubles affect the married couple. They are drifting apart and falling out of love. One day, they find out their son is ill and will have to travel to the city for an operation. The long-anticipated journey is exciting for the boy. For the parents, the journey is one of anxiety and separation, which forces them to reflect anew on the essence of their relationship.
Four boys act out games in a nearly barren landscape near a mining excavation where blasting is going on. The oldest, Szafran, is their leader. When he gets into a frenzy, so do the others: running barefoot through thistles, rubbing dirt in their hair, catching fish barehanded. Szafran says he is the Antichrist and gives orders. Are these games or something else?
