Shortly before the collapse of the GDR, Helke Misselwitz traveled the country by train to interview East German women of different ages and backgrounds.
Soldier Ignaz Wolz returns from WWI with an immeasurable hatred of capitalist war profiteers. He decides to start his own revolution, but tries to stay away from the organized class struggle. He steals from the rich men and divides the wealth among the poor.
Karl and Richard, two German soldiers captured by the Russians in World War I, become very close friends—so close that Richard shares intimate stories about his wife, Anna. Through these stories, Karl falls in love with her in his thoughts.
While an anatomy seminar prepares to examine the cadaver of Franz Wozzeck in the name of scientific progress, medical student Büchner excoriates humanity for having allowed Wozzeck’s fate. The tragic story unfolds in flashbacks, as Büchner narrates.