Junior Lieutenant Maleshkin, an unshooted graduate of the school, commands the crew of the self-propelled gun SU-100. All the subordinates of Maleshkin are older than him and much more experienced. The authority of the young commander is tested at every step, he quarrels, then reconciles with his crew.

Grusha's (Lidiya Fedoseyeva-Shukshina) husband has left her and she is now a single parent to her adolescent son Vitya (Vladimir Naumenko). Her brother Nikolay (Mikhail Ulyanov) is determined to hook her up with his friend Vladimir (the film's co-director Stanislav Lyubshin). For Grusha and Vladimir to have privacy to build up their relationship, Nikolay decides his nephew Vitya needs to stay out of the way, so he urges Vitya to come live with his family for a while. However, Grusha's not so sure about the arrangement. Based on a play by Vasiliy Shukshin.

Soldiers undertake the perilous task of removing a stockpile of World War II bombshells discovered during roadworks under the ground of a small village.

This five part epic war drama gives a dramatized detailed account of Soviet Union's war against Nazi Germany during world war two. Each of the five parts represents a separate major eastern front campaign.