In a New York hospital, a man is cured of heroin addiction after a grueling three-month treatment. Although no longer an addict, he has complete amnesia: the only clues to his past are an expensive ring he was wearing when admitted, and a book of matches from a Puerto Rican nightclub. He pawns the ring and buys clandestine passage on a boat to Puerto Rico in search of his identity.
A small town celebrates the triumph of their revolution. Under the euphoria of the moment, the town's founder is declared a traitor and the destruction of his statue is decided by the people. A journalist buys the statue before it is destroyed. Later, the townspeople discover that the statue isn't from who they thought it was and they decide to retrieve it. The journalist, however, doesn't want to give it back, giving rise to the dilemma.
Novel
The film features Fernandez himself as a character named Rogellio Torres. The lion's share of the footage, however, is devoted to the romance between Esperanza, granddaughter of a common laborer, and Jose Luis Castro, the firebrand son of a landowner. Joining a revolutionary movements, Castro is disowned by his father, but Esperanza remains loyally by his side. Later on, Castro's father is killed by outlaws; in seeking vengeance, he sacrifices his own life, while Esperanza carries on his revolutionary work with their young son in tow.
