Carl Fitzgerald, one of life's major casualties, is in his thirties, and leading a life that's heading nowhere. He lives in a ramshackle house, is unemployed, has been dumped by his wife, and has a domineering mother who insists on continually telling her son what a loser he is. After getting a job as a chef in a sleazy, cockroach-infested rock 'n' roll club, Carl is convinced that his life has taken a turn for the better. He falls in love with Sophie, a luscious, 19-year-old Greek barmaid, unaware that she is betrothed to the club's owner. Things get progressively worse when he gets on the wrong side of Laurie, the club's thuggish chief bouncer, then scuffles with his Turkish kitchen hand, with fatal consequences. And finally, he is marked by the club's heavies when he is mistakenly caught up in the firebombing of the joint.