Marie, the charming daughter of Italian immigrants, has a dream : to become rich. In Roubaix, where she lives, she meets and marries small-time crooner Marcel Potier. Together they leave for the South of France where they live happily but poorly. Now, Marie hasn't forgotten her hopes of wealth and with this aim still in mind she pushes Marcel into becoming the swimming instructor of Achille Zopoulos, an oil tycoon.