The film tells the story of two Highlander brothers – Maciek and Andrzej. After the death of their father, which Andrzej contributed to, and the loss of his beloved Bronka, Andrzej leaves the family home. On his way, he meets the mysterious Wolfram, an anthropologist and climber. He shares with him his mountaineering technique and knowledge about the Prague origins of the highlanders. Andrzej returns to Zakopane, war breaks out. To protect the Highlanders from wartime destruction, he wants to persuade them to cooperate with the Germans. Andrzej and Maciek are standing on opposite sides of the barricade. The brothers' confrontation is bloody and painful.
A caring daughter, a laid-back mother, a popular teacher, a wife you are thick as thieves with – Joanna – is outstanding in each of these roles. But in none of them does she feel like herself. That is why she leads a double life. She has a secret she shares with no-one.
Fourteen-year-old Alicja accidentally gets pregnant. The film tells her story from the perspective of a child who escapes into the world of her imagination, fleeing a reality where doctors are unwilling to perform a legal abortion and everyone except her mother is against it.