In the thirties, the poor living by the Romanian-Hungarian border, were forced to smuggling if they wanted to survive. Mihály, the Hungarian peasant, kills a border guard while fleeing. He is fed up with smuggling and wants to put an end to it, yet he needs money to get a job so he embarks on another turn.

This grotesque historical film is a caricature of the narrow-minded and careerist oligarchs of the 20s. A young military officer stops the young jurist from killing himself and recommends him to his commander, lieutenant-colonel Doborján as a typist.

During the worldwide Depression of the 1930s, a young shopgirl is in love with a man of her own financial class, but succumbs to the seductive machinations of her wealthy boss.

Terpinkó, the bragging man of muscle likes womanising linked with betting: conquering is a great fun for him. He bet one to a hundred on his new boss, Éva. But the wife of the engineer handles all his tricks with annoying benevolence. Terpinkó falls in love with her and therefore he cannot stand her not returning his feelings.

At Christmas Eve in 1944 the runaway Pintér and Gozsó get through the Soviet blockade around Budapest. Pintér intends to hide in a flat abandoned by his own relatives, but he finds his relatives called the Turnovszkys, who are hiding the Jewish Jutka as well. Love unfolds between Zoltán and Jutka.

Csepel, 1945. The Csűrös family, in addition to their three children, give accommodation to the orphaned Jóska, although they themselves struggle with difficult circumstances. The boy lends a helping hand in the factory during the days.