Based on a historical events, this social biopic tells the story of trade-unionist hero Placido Rizzotto, who returns to his Sicilian village after World War II to discover that a new Mafia chief has taken over. Armed with a new anti-fascist idealism, he cannot accept the arrogance of the corrupt power structure and the brutal way in which it selects those who will work the fields and whose families will be able to eat. By dint of his magnetic personality, he manages to convince both the people and his father that the old ways are wrong. He organizes the peasants and persuades them to occupy the land but, ultimately, the ruthless powers overtake him.