The film is set in Beijing during the Cultural Revolution. It is told from the perspective of Ma Xiaojun, nicknamed Monkey (played by Xia Yu (actor); some of Monkey's experiences mimic director Jiang's during the Revolution), who is a teenage boy at the time. Monkey and his friends are free to roam the streets of Beijing day and night because the Cultural Revolution has caused their parents and most adults to be either busy or away and the school system is extremely nonfunctional.