Smitten by a female stranger, new graduate student, Boris Lafkin, follows the girl into the University Medical Center. There he catches the eye of Dr. Harry Wolper, a Nobel Prize-winning biologist who is seeking a student assistant. Harry promises to identify the girl if Boris forgoes his assistant position with Harry's rival colleague, Dr. Sid Kuhlenbeck, and comes to work for him. Harry vows to teach Boris "the big picture" while under his mentor-ship. When Boris accepts, Harry takes him to his off-campus laboratory and explains his experiment, "Lucy," named after his deceased wife. For the past thirty years, Harry has been cultivating her cells, attempting to bring her back to life. Although Harry does not really know the name of Boris' love interest, the boy still grows to admire his new instructor. When Harry needs a "sequencer" to continue his experiments, the two steal one from rival Dr. Sid Kuhlenbeck. Later, Boris learns that his father has passed away, and Harry attends the funeral with his grieving young protege. As Harry shares stories of his wife, Lucy, Boris expresses admiration for the doctor. With their partnership secured, Harry reveals that he has learned the name of Boris' flame: Barbara Spencer. In time, Boris sees Barbara on the street, and helps her carry a refrigerator to her new apartment. When Boris meets her roommate, Larry, he assumes the two are a couple, and becomes despondent. As Dr. Kuhlenbeck pries Boris for information about Harry's secret experiment, he reveals his intention to have Harry removed from his leadership position at the university, and transferred to an outlying facility where the elderly scientists teach. Meanwhile, Harry posts fliers seeking a female ovary donor to further his experiments. When he later consoles a crying young woman named Meli, who believes she may be pregnant but cannot afford medical testing, Harry offers to perform a blood test at no charge. Learning she is not pregnant, the grateful girl offers Harry one of her eggs and moves in to Harry's home. When Boris meets Meli and learns she donated an ovary, he believes Harry has gone too far. In turn, Meli confides her intention to marry Harry. Sometime later, Barbara seeks out Boris and explains that she no longer wants to live with her roommate, Larry, after he made sexual advances toward her. Boris offers Barbara temporary accommodations at his apartment while she looks for a new place to live. Feeling comfortable with her new friend, Barbara accepts his offer. Elsewhere, Harry asks Meli for a second egg, and she agrees, on condition that Harry gives their budding relationship a chance. At Boris' apartment, Barbara settles in, and the young man struggles to restrain his attraction to her. Later, Meli proposes marriage to Harry, but he refuses to take the young girl seriously. At a faculty dinner party, Harry introduces his colleagues to Meli, and the girl is mesmerizing. When Dr. Kuhlenbeck attempts to seduce her, Meli rejects him. Harry later shows his home lab to the chairperson of the Biology department, Paul, and shares his progress with resurrecting "Lucy." Paul, a close friend of Harry's, advises him to keep his ludicrous experiment to himself. In time, Harry invites Boris and Barbara to his beach house, where they fall in love. Boris proposes marriage while making love to Barbara, and she accepts. Back in Harry's lab, "Lucy's" fertilized egg begins to grow in a test tube. Paul and Boris congratulate the doctor on his achievement, but Meli is not pleased. Later, Barbara develops morning sickness, and she fears she is pregnant. Later still, Dr. Kuhlenbeck discovers the stolen lab equipment at Harry's house, and university officers repossess the contraptions, destroying the "Lucy" fetus in the process. However, some of her cultivated cells remain intact. Due to the incident, Boris anticipates being expelled and blames Harry for leading him astray. Meanwhile, Meli fights with Harry over "Lucy," chastising him for not accepting his wife's death. Heartbroken, Meli leaves her companion. Later, Harry accepts a transfer to the isolated research facility within the university, but first fulfills his obligation to give a presentation for Biology department financiers. Dr. Kuhlenbeck is furious when Harry successfully procures a large grant from the financiers, and learns the research funds will go with Harry to the outlying facility. Later, Boris takes Barbara to the hospital after she suffers pains and fainting spells. There, Dr. Kuhlenbeck examines her, and rushes her into emergency treatment when she falls unconscious. Barbara's parents arrive at her bedside and tell Boris how much Barbara loves him. Dr. Kuhlenbeck reveals that Barbara suffered a stroke and can no longer breathe on her own. Although she could remain alive in a coma for several years, Dr. Kuhlenbeck recommends that her parents remove her from life support. Devastated, Boris vows to protect Barbara, but her parents give permission to let her die. As Boris begs Dr. Kuhlenbeck to wait, claiming Barbara is not brain dead, Harry arrives to intervene. Bearing a letter from the university dean, Harry is given permission to conduct tests on Barbara for two more days, and enlists Boris' help. Ultimately agreeing with Dr. Kuhlenbeck's grave assessment, Harry extracts some of Barbara's cells and offers to use them to bring her back if she dies, but Boris is determined to accept her death, if it occurs. Forgoing science, Harry and Boris turn to prayer and the power of love to save Barbara. When Boris tells his mentor that he failed to learn "the big picture" because he was too caught up in his love for Barbara, Harry suggests otherwise. Harry leaves Boris to sit vigil at Barbara's side and searches for Meli, posting fliers around town declaring his desire to marry her. Harry speaks aloud to his deceased wife, and finally bids her farewell. Sometime later, Meli finds Harry at his beach house, and he throws the last of Lucy's cells into the ocean. They express their love for each other, and Meli agrees to marry Harry. Meanwhile, at the hospital, Boris pleads with Barbara to live. As Dr. Kuhlenbeck pulls Boris away, Barbara squeezes her lover's hand, proving she is still alive. When Dr. Kuhlenbeck removes her breathing machine, Boris is enraged, then realizes Barbara is breathing on her own. Looking for Barbara's parents to notify them of Barbara's recovery, Boris sees Harry, and the friends embrace. Sometime later, Boris returns to the hospital carrying armfuls of presents for Barbara. In the final scene, students flock to follow Harry to his new outpost within the university, and Meli tells him she's expecting a baby.
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