What does being a Jew mean nowadays? Emanuel Goldfarb, a Jewish journalist, is asked by the Director of a Jewish community in Germany, to respond to an invitation by a professor to tell his pupils about his life as a Jew living in Germany. This conversation, performed by Goldfarb and the Director of the community, is the only scene of Oliver Hirschbiegel's film « Ein ganz gewohnlicher Jude » presented at the Film and Television Festival of Genève, which was shot outdoors and it's the only moment where something apparently happens.
The Jewish antiques dealer Siegfried Rabinovicz is on his way from New York to Hamburg where he is about to testify as the principal witness in a murder case. During a stop-over, an airport hostess talks him into giving up his seat on the connecting flight to another passenger. While Rabinovicz is waiting in the VIP lounge, he gets into a conversation with a stranger who is remarkably well informed about the murder Rabinovicz is going to testify about.
