Carmen, the infamous woman at the center of this tale, warns the men she attracts immediately: she will not be tamed. When she sets her sights on a trusting soldier, Don José, nobody is prepared for the events that follow. Falling instantly in love with Carmen, Don José willingly follows her into a life of thieving, ignoring the attentions of Micaëla, his hometown sweetheart. As a dashing toreador, Escamillo, enters the equation, Carmen finds her attractions shifting to the handsome bullfighter, pushing Don José to the brink of desperation.