影片表现了罗马郊区的青少年、妓女和拉皮条的人的生活，反映了流氓无产者和被社会所唾弃的人的生活世界。这部影片充满自然主义，高潮部分带有强烈的宗教狂热，穿插着梦幻，但又有明显的社会和心理特点，影片以主人公富有隐喻的死结束。导演在该片中大量运用了实际生活中的语言。
改编自法国著名作家左拉的同名文学名著《小酒店》，本片被认为是最佳版本。让·雷诺阿拍摄的《娜娜》系本片的续集。故事讲述一个女人在被情人抛弃后去做洗衣妇独自抚养两个孩子，后来他和一个老实的工人结婚，又生下一女，丈夫不幸摔断腿，在家休养；她在用完积蓄后开了一家小店维持生计。当初遗弃她的老情人又来找她，并促使她丈夫酗酒；不久后丈夫染上酒瘾，老情人又在家白吃白喝，她辛苦工作仍然无法支付这些人的开支，结果他们竟然也怂恿她也一起来借酒浇愁。于是被酒精弄得家破人亡……本片忠实于左拉的原著，充满了对现实生活的控诉和下层人民悲惨的命运的同情。
安娜（蕾雅·马萨利 Lea Massari 饰）在与外交官父亲的一席不愉快的谈话之后，气愤地和女友克劳迪娅（莫尼卡·维蒂 Monica Vitti 饰）驾车去找男友桑德罗（加比利艾尔·费泽蒂 Gabriele Ferzetti 饰）。安娜犹豫着进了男友的公寓，留下克劳迪娅一人在外面等候。安娜虽然和桑德罗谈婚论嫁，但两人早已貌合神离。他们与一群朋友驾着游艇出海时，两人之间的矛盾越发尖锐。众人来到一个荒岛上休息，安娜与桑德罗言谈不和，两人不欢而散。正当众人准备返航时，却发现安娜神秘地失踪了。大家寻遍整个小岛，却不见安娜任何踪迹。在找寻安娜的过程中，克劳迪亚和桑德罗相互产生了暧昧，虽然克劳迪亚努力克制心中的悸动，但在桑德罗的热情追求下，她坠入了情网。内疚的克劳迪娅一直无法摆脱安娜的阴影，无法心无旁骛地与桑德罗在一起。而当她下定决心与桑德罗建立关系时，却发现他与别的女人在一起。
Alberto Nardi is a Roman businessman who fancies himself a man of great capabilities, but whose factory teeters perennially on the brink of catastrophe. Alberto is married to a rich and successful businesswoman from Milan, Elvira Almiraghi who has a no-nonsense attitude and barely tolerates the attempts of her husband to keep his factory afloat with her money.
诺曼底，十九世纪下半叶。珍妮·丹迪厄和她的父母以及他们的仆人罗莎莉住在庄园里。她认识了朱利安，一个英俊的男人，她很快就和他结婚了。她的幸福是短暂的，因为她发现朱利安娶她不仅是为了钱，而且他也背叛了她，罗莎莉把这一切都推到了极致。后者在离开家前生了一个女婴。六年后，朱利安有了一个新的情妇，吉尔伯特德福切维尔。珍妮勇敢地忍受了这种新的考验。然而，吉尔伯特的丈夫在一辆大篷车里让这对恋人大吃一惊，愤怒地把他们扔到悬崖边上。
故事发生在意大利的卡塔尼亚，安东尼奥（马塞洛·马斯楚安尼 Marcello Mastroianni 饰）生得一副英俊的面孔，是小镇里有名的花花公子。许多姑娘被他的传闻撩得心痒痒，慕名而来希望成为他的妻子。最终，安东尼奥选择了名为芭芭拉（克劳迪娅·卡汀娜 Claudia Cardinale 饰）的女子，两人携手步入了婚礼的殿堂。结婚之后，芭芭拉才发现自己的丈夫外强中干，实际上是个性无能，感觉受到了欺骗的芭芭拉决定离开安东尼奥。为了保全儿子的颜面，安东尼奥的父亲做了许多的荒唐事，并且最终死于非命，而安东尼奥却在无心插柳的情况下，成功的令家中的女仆怀孕。
At a wedding party involving three beautiful women, a young man should choose the most charming. But a professor intervenes to prevent the verdict, remembering the troubles caused by Paris in a similar situation.
Alain is the only son of a wealthy bourgeois couple. He takes violin lessons in Ménilmontant, where he is spotted by Fleur, a poor girl: she is going to kidnap him and demand a ransom from the young man's parents, money which will be used to pay for a good lawyer for her brother accused of killing a policeman.
In Lebanon, industrialist Hennequin, director of a French oil company, entrusts engineers Jean Domèvre, a Frenchman, and Mokhrir, a Lebanese, with the prospecting of an isolated region granted to him by Countess Athelstane Orloff. Their search remains fruitless until Mokhir reports the discovery of a uranium deposit, but disappears before Jean can identify the location. He goes to the Countess for help in finding Mokhir and surprises her when, due to financial difficulties, she is negotiating her concession with the Englishman Hobson, director of a rival company. Attracted by Jean, the Countess nevertheless gives him her preference and they set off together in search of Mokhir.
Quand la Femme S'en Mele (When the Woman Butts In) stars French film favorite Edwige Feuillere as a high-class gangster's moll named Maine. When Maine's first husband and daughter pay a visit, it's an awkward time for our heroine and her current amour, gang boss Godot (Jean Servais). In addition to fielding a lot of embarrassing questions, Godot also has to deal with a pesky turf war with a rival mobster. Not that the ex-husband is a paragon of virtue: he's busy trying to get even with a crooked business associate.