The film, based on a 1955 novel of the same name by Roger Plá, is set in Buenos Aires in the 1940s, covering the formation, rise and fall of a criminal gang.

It stars Carlos Estrada as the protagonist mafia boss Miguel Acuña, Luis Brandoni, Julia von Grolman and Héctor Alterio.

[1] In 1940s Buenos Aires, the laconic, immaculately dressed Miguel Acuña, or "El Púa" (Carlos Estrada) leads a double life.

While planning a bigger caper, Alma (Julia von Grolman), the wife of his associate Américo (Luis Brandoni), falls in love with Miguel.

He is eventually shot on the roof and falls to his death through the skylight onto the bar's pool table, much to the shock of the bartender who had never suspected his wicked ways.

[3] In his book Breve historia del cine argentino, César Maranghello states that he believes Paño verde to have been David's best picture, praising the "fury and nostalgia of its protagonist", Carlos Estrada.