Based on the semi-fictional memoires of writer Manuel Vincent, the story is set in the 1950's during Franco's reign. The author has just returned to the city of his birth in 1957 after attending boarding school and his father insists that he become a lawyer or a priest. Its off to law school where he sees his dreamgirl and searches for her. Meanwhile, his professors spout the facist party line while a younger prof slips him Camus, Sartre, and other banned writing. Told through a series of episodes, the film focuses on these college years and Manuel's occasional run-ins with the state.