A Saxon village in 1792: While the Prussians go against France, the haymaking takes place in the village and the resolute Marthe catches her daughter Ev with the village blacksmith Ruprecht in the hay.

Germany in 1943. The Berlin worker Klaus Hartung is deployed as a soldier to the Eastern front during World War II. During a tour, he is captured by a Russian patrol. While in captivity, Hartung comes to the conclusion that he has to come through and actively take part in the effort to end the war. He consents to abduct a German officer together with two Russian soldiers. During their adventurous mission, the men who at first had been enemies, become sincere friends.

大卫（马里奥·菲舍尔（Mario Fischel））是当地拉比（沃尔特·陶布（Walter Taub））的儿子，他看到1930年代德国的反犹太主义抬头，但直到他的父亲的犹太教堂被焚毁，母亲（艾琳·弗基扬（Irene Vrkijan））遭到骚扰、威吓之后， 他才意识到德国已经变得多么危险。 有一段时间，他和他的家人设法在柏林地下生存。 但是与纳粹军官的亲密接触使他断绝了与自己所爱的每个人的联系，独自走了出去。