Two young men, Zim and Jean-Pierre, both sentenced for a minor offence, recognize one another when they are released from prison on the same day. One wants to reform, but his friend wants to stay a crook. The first one gets a job and begins improving his life, while the young criminal ends up incarcerated for stealing cars.

Although based on a novel by Georges Simenon, director (and songwriter) Serge Gainsbourg has superimposed several dark emotions and a subtle brutality over the weak plot about a man's trip to Africa and his unfortunate passion for a murderess whose amorality sends the disillusioned fellow back to Europe. Sometimes described as frustrating and self-centered, reactions to this film swing across a broad spectrum of complaints -- not the least might be whether or not Gainsbourg is using a clichéd and stereotypical view of "dark Africa" to convey what he sees in his characters.