The countryside around the Po River, from Piedmont to the delta, is dotted with abandoned farmhouses. The surrounding landscape appears deserted, almost completely devoid of human presence. Gianni Celati documents the tragedy and loss of values in this new desolated landscape. The documentary unfolds on several narrative levels: a visit to a series of "collapsing houses"; the crew's journey on a small train through the countryside; the presence of a narrator - English writer John Berger - who explains the problem of ruins in our world; and a monologue on the collapse of peasant culture and the abandonment of old houses prepared by an actress, Bianca Maria D'Amato, together with her director, Alberto Sironi.