Three harmless, lovable patients of a psychiatric institution are sent to the country for the summer. The driver has a heart attack on a secluded country road and the bus ends up in a ditch. The three march directly to the next village, which they take to be their destination. Sichel's strength is matched only by his size, and he has never spoken a word. Kamilla, forced to work as the village prostitute by her father, discovers a sensitive man in this clumsy oaf. A chaste and tender relationship develops between the two. Ezechiel Dölken has suffered from insomnia since childhood. He befriends a confused old woman who takes him for her son finally returned from WWII. Dölken plays along and, through her, he finds the childhood he never had. Ivo lost his wife and children in a car accident. Since then, he has lived in another world where he's together with his family. A piglet falls in love with him. A young scamp who has gotten himself into an apparently hopeless situation turns to Ivo. The two become friends, and Ivo saves him from trouble. The patients' absence is noticed and the hunt begins. At first, none of the villagers suspect that the three gentlemen are the object of the search. By the time their identity is discovered, they're far away, and the next village is already waiting.