Siegfried Seibt
Susanne is a young single mother who lives a somewhat "carefree" lifestyle. After quitting her job, she finds herself in trouble financially and attempts a minor insurance fraud to make ends meet. Despite its rare view of everyday socialism from a woman's perspective, East German officials were critical of this frank portrayal of a less-than-ideal socialist citizen and turned down all invitations for the film to be screened abroad.
Joe and Benny are two cowboys on tour in the Wild West as a singing duo, usually without a penny in their pockets to spare. Joe is a talented rodeo-rider, which fascinates the little girl Susanne and gives her the wish to have him as a father. Her mother Maria, however, is to marry the evil, rich farmer Dave. Susanne wants to stop the wedding, so she sneaks aboard Joe and Benny's wagon to persuade them to intervene. Dave brands them as kidnappers, forcing them to flee as outlaws to one of the families tyrannized by Dave. Together, they strike back at Dave, at which point Maria sees that he's the wrong man for her.
Two kids suddenly call three very enchanted persons to reality while spending summer in their grandma's village.
Shortly before the end of WWII: While he is fighting at the Eastern front, private Werner Holt looks back on his still young life – especially his long-time friendship with former classmate Gilbert Wolzow, who is now Werner′s commanding officer. Both men used to be fanatic Nazi followers, but since Holt witnessed a massacre conducted by SS troops and the execution of a friend, he has begun to question the regime. He saves a Slovakian woman who is to be executed, and finally openly opposes Wolzow.
