In the winter of 1942-43, a Jewish family leaps from a train going through Silesia. They are separated in the woods, and Leon, a local peasant who's now a farmer of some wealth, discovers the woman, Rosa, and hides her in his cellar. Leon's a middle-aged Catholic bachelor, tormented by his sexual drive. He doesn't tell Rosa he's seen signs her husband is alive, and he begs her to love him. Rosa offers herself to Leon if he'll help a local Jew in hiding who needs money. Leon pays, and love between Rosa and him does develop, but then Leon's peasant subservience and his limited empathy lead to tragedy. At the war's end, a ray of sunshine comes from an unexpected place.
Oskar Matzerath is a very unusual boy. Refusing to leave the womb until promised a tin drum by his mother, Agnes, Oskar is reluctant to enter a world he sees as filled with hypocrisy and injustice, and vows on his third birthday to never grow up. Miraculously, he gets his wish. As the Nazis rise to power in Danzig, Oskar wills himself to remain a child, beating his tin drum incessantly and screaming in protest at the chaos surrounding him.
A darkly comedic exploration of personal struggle and societal pressure, we follow the story of a middle-aged man named Max, who is trapped in a life of monotony and frustration. After a series of unexpected events, Max finds himself in increasingly absurd and challenging situations, forcing him to confront his own limitations and fears. With sharp humor and a critique of societal expectations, the film delves into the pressures that shape our lives and the lengths we go to in order to break free from them. A poignant yet quirky tale about bending to life's demands or breaking under the weight of it all.
Summer in Germany, anno 1970. Italy is the number one destination. As every year, swarms of Teutonic tourists make their way to the Adriatic Sea. Only Willi Hirsekorn from Castrop-Rauxel has so far no plans to break south. That changes, however, as the bitchy neighbor Mizzi Buntje proudly tells of their upcoming holiday in Italy. Willi can not afford this boasting. Shortly determined, the bags are packed, and already rushes Willi in the car with his wife Sieglinde, daughter Lotti and son Kuno the sun.
East Berlin, shortly after the construction of the Berlin Wall. Kurt Schröder and his family dig a tunnel to escape to West Berlin as they struggle to overcome the obstacles blocking their underground path to freedom.