The year is 1953. Due to the mass amnesty, the criminal situation in the USSR is tense. At the same time, Ivan Astafyev, a former commander of a reconnaissance platoon, who was released from prison, returns to his hometown of Gorky. And immediately becomes a victim of an attack by bandits, and then a false accusation of beating the attackers. Ivan's pre—war acquaintance, Captain Shvedov, helps out of trouble, who gets him a job at the Dynamo sports society to train policemen in hand-to-hand combat.
Adventures in a fantasy world: Gorshok and Knyaz save the Princess from the clutches of the evil Sorcerer.
During the day, Lera studies humankind and its needs through opinion polls, which are an educational practice at the institute; at night, she dances under the pseudonym Gerda in a club to support herself and her mother. The people she meets are as unfortunate as her family. Her father has recently left for another woman, but he constantly returns home, unable to make his choice and thereby making the life of close people intolerable. The mother painfully endures the breakup and constantly sleeps, ignoring reality. Lera doesn’t know how to carry on, where to go and what to live for, and — most importantly — how to improve life. The adult world, invariable unfortunate, which Lera observes day and night, seems hopeless.
A 13-year-old girl grows up between a boxing ring and the street. Her friends are guys who kill and rob. In the 1990s the whole city hates them, but for Masha they are the best people in the world, who love and protect her. She sings them jazz and dreams of becoming a singer. But one day Masha learns who they actually are and what they have done to her life and family. She matures, leaves the small city for Moscow, trying to break with her past. But one day the past stands directly before her.