Burned-out, over-the-hill actor Giovanni returns to Bologna for the funeral of his twin, Pippo, a wealthy suicide unlucky in love. The family tells Pippo's mother it was an accident, but there's a problem: Vanda, Pippo's one-time fiancée, won't grieve and refuses to come to the funeral. At a family dinner, Vanda talks about the note Peppo left. Again the family tries to keep mom in the dark. They assign Giovanni to persuade Vanda to keep up appearances. He sees her unhappy relationship with her father, who suspects her of sleeping with a doctor. Why she sees the doctor, how Giovanni and she deal with their mutual attraction, and his rebirth become the film's focus. 著名男演员吉奥瓦尼回到故乡博洛尼亚，参加他孪生兄弟皮普的葬礼，皮普因为爱情的不幸而自杀，而家里人却告诉吉奥瓦尼的死因是个意外事故。但问题是皮普生前的未婚妻——瓦达，她并不打算在葬礼上露面。在家庭晚餐上，瓦达告诉吉奥瓦尼，皮普生前留下了一封短信……
