Spain, 1973. Dictator Francisco Franco has ruled the country since 1939 with an iron fist; but he is now a very old and sick man. The future of the weakened regime is in danger. Admiral Carrero Blanco is his natural successor. The Basque terrorist gang ETA decides that he must die to prevent the dictatorship from continuing.
In the 18th century in Madrid, the Marquess of Esquilache, King Charles III of Spain's former minister, bans on wearing the popular wide collar with a long coat and brimmed hat. Along with other measures provoke a massive riot in the city.
Actress Lola Herrera and her ex-husband, actor Daniel Dicenta, face the camera with honesty as they tell each other what they needed to about their professional and personal lives.
Cecilio Rubes, a businessman engaged in the manufacture of baths and toilets, tries to remain neutral in the imminent Spanish civil war. But the attitude of Cécil, his only child, a spoiled boy who grows without respect their parents, will forced him to face the cruel reality of the facts. Jumping back and forth in time, we are shown his present and his past through his wife Adela and Paulina, the mistress of father and son.
