Two men lose their jobs and have to start from scratch. They go their separate ways about it, but their paths sometimes cross.

A middle-aged man's doubts about himself transform themselves into paranoia about his younger wife's behavior in this psychological thriller. The husband plants listening devices around their apartment and eventually drives the heretofore innocent woman into the arms of one of his co-workers.

A young woman is researching her brother's murderer and places an advertisement in the newspaper promising 7,000 marks for any useful information. The two young crooks Rio and Tommy sense their chance and send her on a futile journey across Germany, Belgium and France, "somewhere by the sea". Along the way, she meets strange characters, including a salesman named Chandler, with whom she spends a night.