A band of determined Russian soldiers fight to hold a strategic building in their devastated city against a ruthless German army, and in the process become deeply connected to a Russian woman who has been living there.

In the center of the plot is a senior investigator named Masha Shvetsova and her male colleagues. The plot is the most vital, but, like in “Streets of Broken Lanterns,” it is seasoned with a fair amount of humor - otherwise, how can the audience (and the heroes) endure countless morgues, identifications and other “cute” charms of the investigative routine?