Locarno in August: when movie people from around the world descend on the small, otherwise tranquil city on the shore of Lake Maggiore for the legendary film festival, putting an end to the peace and quiet.
Former police psychologist Matteo Basso, who actually prefers the opera to the movies, has already let himself be talked into attending one of the premieres with his friend Flavio. Flavio is hoping to run into his first love, who has become an internationally acclaimed film star. Yet when the first images appear on the screen on the piazza, a shot rings out from one of the surrounding buildings. A young actress dies. Matteo Basso takes on the investigation. To his surprise, it leads him back to his small home town in Italy, Cannobio, where he runs a little macelleria. Far from the glamorous film world, the murdered actress volunteered at a retirement home here. When Matteo Basso finds himself grappling with a whole series of bizarre deaths, it soon becomes clear that sometimes real life is far more dramatic than any film.
