Cast with real Sicilian locals as villagers, director Luchino Visconti's haunting film presents a wrenching study of a family struggling to find happiness against the backdrop of Sicily's fishing community. The townsfolk's' lives undergo dramatic changes when they plot to overthrow the greedy wholesalers depriving them of a decent living. But against the odds, they still enjoy love, laughter and friendship within their close-knit community.