Marthe is a girl with a special gift: she can cure illnesses. But the time she lives in is marked by superstition and godliness. When Marthe can not help the burgrave's wife from her village, the girl has to flee. Your path crosses that of Ritter Christian, who moves eastward into the Mark Meissen with a group of Frankish settlers. In the Middle Ages an unimaginably long and arduous way. Christian has a hard time avoiding the fascination of Marthe, but their diverse backgrounds make a relationship impossible and the settlers are afraid of the weird girl.
After the surprising death of her mother, budding artist Josefine hastily leaves the city of Munich and moves to an old, abandoned dairy farm in the countryside. She also escapes from her friend Simon, who, contrary to his assurances, has still not separated from his wife. And Josefine finally wants to find out who her father was. Her mother had left the village and raised Josefine in the city.
70-year old Brandner Kaspar lives with his granddaughter Nannerl in the mountains at the Schliersee. As he is visited by the Death and wants to take him, Brandner Kaspar tricks him and gets another 20 years of life.
On the Schiermoser farm tense expectation prevails. The 'Urban', the Schaubleins, surprisingly announced their arrival. In the past, they were welcome as generous summer visitors. But now the shortage years of the First World War prevail. And the farmer's wife suspects lazy parasites in the townsfolk. The city family is indeed facing ruin. Especially since the defiant daughter Rosalie has just knocked out a promising money marriage without regard to scandal. The Rosalie is attracted to the Schiermoser heir Franz. His mother already drives the thought of a 'Madame Bäurin' to madness. Everyone experiences a turbulent time of upheaval. The end of the First World War will shake the social fronts as well as the new machine age.
A woman arrives home, apparently coming from her job, and sets out about house chores and placing every object around her with extreme care. The only company she has is the radio, tuned to a station of popular music hits that the audience can ask for by telephone. There is a single hint that she may have breast cancer. Then, she sets the table for a large dinner - for one - including a champagne bottle. She commits suicide by pills overdose, before she utters a word.
Based on Franz Xaver Kroetz's play, which is in turn based on a true story, this film by Rainer Werner Fassbinder tells the story of a very young girl who, after persuading a local boy to become her lover, induces the anger of her father, whose incestuous sexual attentions to her have grown unbearable.
