When East Germany ceases to be separate from its western half, one would think that things would be better for the couple in this movie who have been plagued by sexual and political harassment of the most virulent kind, but , they are completely unprepared to cope with the swift changes that are transforming their familiar yet desperately unhappy world. In the story, Heinz is a laborer in the cooperative apple orchards of an East German village and has married his sweetheart Lena. She works to take care of the sickly wife of the co-op's manager and also must cope with the sexual attentions of the perfidious man. One day, after discovering this state of affairs, Heinz blows up and assaults his wife's harasser, which only serves to land him in jail. While in prison, the state secret police (the Stasi) get him to help them entrap the co-op manager, whom they believe is going to try to defect.

出色的电子音乐人伊卡鲁斯（Paul Kalkbrenner 饰）最近事业受阻：唱片公司对他的新作品毫无兴趣。所幸他还有露天音乐节和舞厅等舞台让观众为自己疯狂。女友兼经纪人玛蒂尔德（Rita Lengyel 饰）竭力纠正伊卡的吸毒恶习，但唱片无望的打击让伊卡更加依赖毒品，最终伊卡因用药过量引发精神失常，不得不入住保罗教授（Corinna Harfouch 饰）的医院接受治疗。伊卡在医院结识了一批古怪的病友，同时身体在保罗教授的帮助下逐渐回复。难耐寂寞的伊卡溜出医院，发现玛蒂尔德找了一位同性恋人，自己反倒成了第三者，唱片公司的冷漠态度让他光火，伊卡大闹公司后返回医院继续创作。凭借诞生于医院的作品，伊卡重新看到了发片的希望，同时他破碎的生活也许能以此为契机得以恢复……
本片主角Paul Kalkbrenner同时担任了配乐的创作。

The true story of pianist Władysław Szpilman's experiences in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. When the Jews of the city find themselves forced into a ghetto, Szpilman finds work playing in a café; and when his family is deported in 1942, he stays behind, works for a while as a laborer, and eventually goes into hiding in the ruins of the war-torn city.