Don't cry for me, Argentina For I am ordinary, unimportant And undeserving Of such attention Unless we all are -- I think we all are -- So share my glory So share my coffin It is 1952 and Eva Perón (MADONNA) is dead. A deeply shocked Argentina mourns the premature death of this country girl whose meteoric rise to defender of the poor changed the nation's history in a few short years. As told by the storyteller Ché (ANTONIO BANDERAS), Eva, the illegitimate daughter of a penniless farmer, was born in the tiny Pampas town of Los Toldos. At age 15, she persuades singer Agustín Magaldi (JIMMY NAIL) to take her to Buenos Aires. Ambitious to succeed and against great odds, Eva becomes a radio and film actress and eventually enters influential circles of Buenos Aires society. Once her name is linked with the rising politician Juan Perón (JONATHAN PRYCE), however, tongues begin to wag. Members of Argentina's ruling class and the military disapprove of Eva and Juan's relationship, leading to Perón's brief arrest and the populist revolt of October 17, 1945. The couple marries, and Perón is elected President with the inspirational Eva at his side. She soon establishes herself as an ardent supporter of Perónism and promotes her unique blend of democracy on her "Rainbow Tour" to Europe. The myth of "Saint" Eva Perón grows as she forms The Eva Perón Foundation and works tirelessly to help and protect the country's poor. As the masses induce her to run as a Vice Presidential candidate, dissent grows amongst the military and other politicians over her expanding political power. Tragically, Eva is diagnosed as having terminal cancer. Gravely ill, she renounces the Vice Presidency. When she dies, the people of Argentina do cry for her. Immortalized by her followers, Eva Perón will never grow old.