It is World War II on the outskirts of Naples. On the ground, Germans are prowling; from the air, Allied bombs are falling and even Mount Vesuvius has erupted. Miluzza, a naïve 15 year-old girl subjected to repeated abuse by the men around her, is unable to escape the confines of her small village. After being orphaned she meets a young soldier who has been wounded and helps him return to his family’’s farm. He falls in love and wants to marry her but his mother insists on her son marrying a virgin. Will their wedding night uphold his family’’s expectations?