Viborg in the early 60s: the teenagers Jonas and Agnete are in sixth grade at high-school, and have fallen in love with each other. But Jonas is not prepared to commit and keeps Agnete at a distance. When Agnete turns to her classmate Toke, Jonas begins to fight for her love. Right until they finish school, their love is subject to constant ups and downs. In terms of subject matter, the ninth feature film by the Danish old master Nils Malmros connects to his first success, "The Tree of Knowledge". It is a sensitive, precisely staged emotional portrait of young people. Shooting took three years, in order to allow the protagonists to age in real life. Danish critics were divided by the film. A major objection was that it built too much on peronal memories and thus no longer complied with contemporary viewing habits – while other critics praised Malmros as Denmark's last real author-director. The audience was unanimous in its verdict, though, and made "Aching Hearts" Denmark's most successful film of the summer.