This quirky episodic comedy weaves together three plotlines centered around the employees of a car garage, with some unexpected fairytale elements to get things moving. A woodland fairy convinces shy bookkeeper Piel to suddenly start driving his Trabi far above the speed limit. Manager Neumann sells his soul to a black cat in order to purchase a more respectable vehicle. And a spirit named "Car Accident" offers to warn owner Sengebusch about upcoming traffic accidents so he can make money by always being the first on the scene.
A murder has been committed in "Pension Boulanka", a famous guesthouse for artists and circus people. Captain Bruckner is heading the investigating team.
After a breakdown, Rita returns to her childhood village in 1961. As she recovers, she remembers the past two years: her love for the chemist Manfred, ten years her senior; how his enthusiasm about his new chemical process turned to bitter disappointment in the face of official rejection; how he escaped to West Berlin a few weeks before the Wall was built and hoped that she would follow him …
A sociohistorical drama about the construction of the Simplon-tunnel: A conflict develops when German workers want to strike and fight for better working conditions while Italian workers simply want to earn money and provide for their families.
