Die Ehe der Maria Braun

In a registry office that has just been hit by a bomb, Hermann and Maria Braun get married during the Second World War. Two days later, Hermann has to re-enlist and does not return even after the end of the war. Maria waits, ekes out a living, receives the news that he is dead. She learns how to barter on the black market and tries out love as a kind of barter. She learns the rules of the game in a world dominated by men, but never forgets how to use women's weapons. She works in a bar, starts a relationship with a GI. One evening, just as she is about to go to bed with him, Hermann stands in the doorway. She kills the lover. In court, her husband takes all the blame and goes to prison for her. Maria joins the general quest for new prosperity instead of him. For a common future on day X, the day of his second return. She learns the basic economic laws of the founding years of the FRG and fearlessly believes herself to be the sovereign mistress of a thoroughly economized emotional world. A mistake for which she pays a high price in the end.