In the center of Hamburg, the discovery of an unexploded bomb from the Second World War not only leads to a far-reaching evacuation, but also to an interpersonal state of emergency.

Based on the bestselling biography: Entertainer Horst Lichter has barely had time to relax on his holiday when his mother calls him. In her own dry way, she tells him that she has been diagnosed with cancer and that things are not going well for her. Immediately Horst returns to his hometown with his wife Nada. Returning home brings back childhood memories - of a loving father and a mother who held the reins firmly in difficult situations. Horst tries his best to support his mother Margret - he organises doctor's appointments and tries to provide a little variety into her daily life, even though the relationship between mother and son has been strained for a long time: he counters his mother's edgy, frosty manner as he had learned to do when he was young. He emphasises the positive side of any situation and is always ready to respond with a snappy retort. When Margret learns how serious her illness really is, Horst begins to rethink his own life as well.

Living and loving in a small village in the south of Germany. People and their conflicts with morality, manners, and society.

1934, Hamburg. Adolf Hitler is about to visit the city. Hamburg's executioner falls ill, and is unable to deliver the sentence of four communists who are awaiting capital punishment in jail. Fearing that this would spoil Hitler's visit, SS leader Footh offers a local bankrupt butcher, Albert Teetjen, 2,000 Marks in order to carry out the verdict. The broke Teetjen agrees and follows suit. When his neighbors hear of the execution, they shun him. His wife cannot tolerate her husband's deed and puts an end to her life. Eventually, Teetjen also commits suicide.

After suffering from burnout syndrome and a hospital stay, an architect returns to his family. His wife and the children from their marriage as well as their respective previous marriages are largely considerate, but “normal” life takes its toll: While his wife is in danger of losing her job at the employment office and his business partner runs off with a large sum of money, the pubescent children and aging grandparents demand increased attention.

Married couple Martin and Jackie meet an unconventional Frenchman named Serge, who both are attracted to. But will their marriage survive it?

In addition to demonstrating the unexpected complexities of individual life paths, THE WILD establishes the possibility of “cinematic space” becoming a type of “third space”. Two seemingly contrasting spaces merge to construct a new space. The first space is the living room of a retired couple. The second space is embodied in Super 8 recordings filmed by the old man during his numerous trips to Africa and Asia during the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. The pictures show exotic animals which are projected directly onto the walls and furniture of the house. The assembly of these differing spaces does not create a more succinct boundary between them, but rather assists in the mingling of the two spaces. In this fleeting moment of third space, as it is limited by time, a new cinematic reality is formed.