Gabriele Rossetti returns to southern Italy to say a last farewell to his father, a former stationmaster in a small town not far from Bari. The old man reawakens in him memories of his childhood, of his loving and beautiful mother and fun-seeking uncle, his friends, but also of his father's irascibility and exasperation over his thwarted attempts to realize his artistic ambitions. Ernesto was convinced he was destined to become a famous painter and was willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of his beloved masters and for his belief in his own talent, even his own pride - and this his son cannot accept, determined that he won't turn out like his father. It is only now that, years later, through chance and circumstances, Gabriele begins to understand Ernesto and to see what sort of person his father really was.