Tripoli, 1960s. During the years in which post-colonial Libya fell prey to the s
prawling greed of the West, Michele Balistreri suffered a succession of blows th
at would scar him for life. The death of his mother; the unspeakable horror that
befell his best friend's family; his father's role in Gaddafi's ascent to power
; and the innocent blood pact that would corrupt the course of his future. Rome,
1982. In the wake of a ruinous blunder, a ground-down Commissario Balistreri es
capes his regrets through sex, alcohol and gambling. His sole responsibilities a
re now a stilted investigation into the death of a South American student, and a
tiresome obligation - as a gratitude to the man who saved his career - to a ris
ing television starlet needing protection from the pitfalls of fame. As the risk
s to this girl, Claudia Teodori, begin to rise along with her reputation, the so
rrows of Balistreri's past also start to push back into his present.
