In the 1920s, Mexico was still in a state of near-chaos. Rebellions and revolutions had followed one after the other for decades. Though things were beginning to settle down some, it was still a time when one had the feeling that anything could happen. This film tells the story of one boy's sexual coming-of-age during that time, punctuated by a peasant rebellion sparked by religious concerns (Catholicism had been officially suppressed). The lad has a crush on the wife of the Army man sent to put down the rebellion. He also has an affair with a local woman and briefly runs away with a pretty young prostitute.