Grazia, played by Golino, is a free-spirited mother of three married to shy fisherman Pietro (Vincenzo Amato) and living on the idyllic but isolated island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean Sea.

But when he tells her he plans to send her away to Northern Italy, she runs away and hides in a cave on the shore, where she is secretly tended by Pasquale, who brings her food every day.

He dives in to assist her, thinking a miracle has occurred, and many of the villagers follow suit, thus providing a sheltering circle around her as she is brought safely to shore.

Writing for Premiere magazine, critic Peter Debruge noted, "in the annals of Mediterranean island love stories, Respiro reflects the effortless charm of a film like Il Postino."

Critic Desson Thomson of The Washington Post, however, felt "its long-winded denouement, in which Grazia runs away rather than be sent to an institution, doesn't bring the story full circle.