A parable for the end of totalitarianism. Three protagonists - a high official, a secretary, and a border guard - representative of three generations (1948, 1968, 1988) are forced to confront their ideals and places in society through the events of one strange night.
Set in World War 2 as the Germans occupy Czechoslovakia, teenage Emilka's father is murdered by the Nazis, but she is selected for special treatment by virtue of being blonde. She is billeted with the commandant of a concentration camp near the Baltic coast, where his kindness towards her provokes his wife's jealousy, but is compromised when Emilka witnesses his brutality towards the prisoners.
Inseparable friends Štěpán and Kendy are students in their final year of high school. When they are in the principal's office after the trouble with the rather scandalous song "On the Carpet", the school principal gives them the idea of rehearsing a theater performance. They decide on Tyl's Forest Maiden in a rather unconventional version - with music, singing, and several unusual props. While Kendy sees the theater as not only an opportunity to enjoy himself, for Štěpán it is a chance to get closer to the charming Marcela Borůvková. What was originally just a student recession soon starts to get out of hand for both authors, not only because of the quirky cast but also because of information in the press, which is taken care of by the father of one of the classmates. The business is gaining in size, and even a television station is contacted, which shows an interest in making a program about the performance. At that moment, the disaster seems inevitable to Štěpán and Kendy.
The plot begins in the Soviet Union showing first efforts to establish the Czechoslovak legion in 1942. The film also shows the assassination of Heydrich and the subsequent annihilation of Lidice. The main topis of the film is battles with German troops for Sokolovo.
There are still water spirits among us. One group lives in Prague, led by Mr. Wassermann, who is using his wife's family as a servants. All they need is their old house near the river. But the house is to be demolished. They have to stop it. And the only way is to drown Dr. Mrácek, who is responsible for the demolition. But he falls in love with Wassermann's niece Jana. He changes to fish, is mistaken for water spirit from Germany, is drowned and revived again. The other problem is the flour with ears... and so on...