Famous director Barewicz receives news that he’s won the Grand Prix at a film festival in West Berlin, along with a prize—a Mercedes. He immediately heads to the border to collect the car, using taxi no. 1313. Unsure of his driving skills, he asks the professionals—Kasia and Jacek—for help bringing the vehicle back. On the return trip, they discover the Mercedes is a wreck covered in shiny paint. Barewicz vows to track down whoever played the cruel joke. Meanwhile in Warsaw, a thief nicknamed “Ksywa” breaks into a so-called vacant apartment in a high-rise. While he’s busy “working,” a housing commission arrives, inventories the contents, seals the unit, and orders the entrance to be bricked up—leaving Ksywa trapped inside.