Friends Aldo, Giovanni, and Giacomo travel from north to south for Giacomo's wedding: the father of the bride, a tyrannical rich man who is both their boss and father-in-law—since Aldo and Giovanni have also married into the family—has entrusted them with a costly piece of modern art, one that looks just like a rather unremarkable wooden leg.
While waiting for the brain surgery of his daughter Angela, victim of a motorcycle accident, the surgeon Timoteo recalls his torrid affair with and passion for Italia, a simple woman from slums in the periphery of the big city where he lives. The ghost of the beloved and sexual object of desire Italia chases him in his memories.
