After suffering terrible headaches and stomach cramps that he can no longer bear, Mr. Lazarescu (Ion Fiscuteanu) calls for an ambulance, beginning one man’s poignant journey through Bucharest hospitals in search of proper medical care. His lone ally, medic Mioara (Luminta Gheorghiu), admirably fights for his life with compassion and decency. However, cursed with viciously ironic luck and fumes of alcohol on his breath, Mr. Lazarescu is treated with scorn, indifference and little else as he slips deeper into oblivion.