Следователь по особо важным делам выезжает на место событий, где в горном южном районе страны коррупция и преступность приняли новые изощренные формы. Под видом случайного ограбления поезда угоняются отдельные вагоны, груженные отходами металлургического производства - а по существу обогащенная золотоносная руда. На вооружении похитителей все средства. Тех же, кто пытается помешать им красть золото тоннами, они безжалостно убивают...
In this heavyhanded political allegory, set in the plains and mountains of Central Asia, a tribe of people led by the fanatical Mavrut (Vladimir Msrian) wanders about in the most desolate parts of this already desolate region in search of a mythical "Land of Happiness." Their quest is hampered by the fact that they must all live a life which is extremely ascetic. One tribeswoman expresses a desire to have a child, but is rebuked by being reminded that she has vowed never to have worldly ties that would distract her from the quest. When she has a child anyway, she and her lover are made to pay for this crime in a horrific way. Despite that, the child becomes a kind of holy mascot for the group, touted by the leader as a kind of savior. They are distressed when the child goes missing one day, only to appear mysteriously on the opposite side of the rapids of a river, beckoning to them.
