Overview

The GDR is still young, but Thomas Brasch (Albrecht Schuch) already doesn't fit in. It is above all his father Horst (Jörg Schüttauf) who wants to help build the new German state. But Thomas, the eldest son, would rather become a writer. Thomas is a dreamer, an obsessive and a rebel. His very first play is banned and soon he is also expelled from film school. When the Soviet tanks roll through Prague in 1968, Brasch protests with his girlfriend Sanda (Ioana Jacob) and other students in the streets of Berlin - and runs into the wall. His own father betrays him to the Stasi, sending him to prison. Released on parole, Brasch works hard, loves and suffers, and writes about love, revolt, and death. But with someone like him, nothing can be done in the GDR. With no prospect of being heard, Thomas and the woman he loves (Jella Haase) leave the homeland that was none to him. In the West he is acclaimed and his books become bestsellers. But Brasch does not allow himself to be taken in. He is far from being at peace.