Bobby and Rose, two youngsters who are in love, have to run away from home when they are falsely accused to have committed a robbery and an assassination.

A tennis champ falls in with the Hollywood crowd, finds himself being corrupted by the life in the fast lane.

Based on the true life experiences of poet Jimmy Santiago Baca, the film focuses on half-brothers Paco and Cruz, and their bi-racial cousin Miklo. It opens in 1972, as the three are members of an East L.A. gang known as the "Vatos Locos", and the story focuses on how a violent crime and the influence of narcotics alter their lives. Miklo is incarcerated and sent to San Quentin, where he makes a "home" for himself. Cruz becomes an exceptional artist, but a heroin addiction overcomes him with tragic results. Paco becomes a cop and an enemy to his "carnal", Miklo.

A "straight" couple dabbles in drugs and become heroin addicts.