Turn-of-the-century Naples. Salvatore Ruotolo and his wife are murdered and their bodies are found in different locations. Since the evidence points to a crime by the Neapolitan crime organization, the Camorra, fear and corruption cause serious hindrances to the investigation by police authorities. In charge is a young and courageous judge who, using evidence discovered by chance, tries to reconstruct the story of the double murder. The plot that the judge must unravel is very complicated.

A young and shy girl Celestina arrives from her small home village to Rome to become a housemaid. Her inexperience and naivety causes her to change her employers quite frequently. As she is moving from one family to another she makes friends with other Roman maids and falls desperately in love with a handsome plumber Fernando. But Fernando isn't telling Celestina that he is already engaged to another woman.

During the 1950s, in Portuguese Mozambique, small-time American hustler, ex-soldier, ex-boxer and adventurer Johnny Jordan is looking for a new gig. His opportunity comes in the form of a local shipping tycoon and importer Moreno who offers Johnny a job after Johnny saves Moreno from an armed mugger on the waterfront.

A German expedition is in the African jungles on an unidentified misson. During this mission one of the German explorers, Thoren, is attacked and captured by the local natives called the Botos.