Two boys are born in Parma, Italy on the day of composer Giuseppe Verdi's death in 1901. Alfredo Berlinghieri is the son of a wealthy landowner and Olmo Dalco is the son of a poverty-stricken peasant who becomes a communist and labor organizer. Though the boys are childhood friends, they increasingly come into conflict as adults as Alfredo panders to the increasingly powerful fascists while Olmo fights relentlessly against Mussolini's followers.