A young woman whose testimony was used to break up a Berlin gang of criminals years ago lives in a witness protection program with a new identity in an idyllic village

One morning, a Japanese monk shows up in a village: He does not speak a word, has a head injury and is evidently on the run. Chief Inspector Louise Bonì immediately senses that the young man is in grave danger. However, her supervisor Bermann does not believe her word - because since a deadly use Bonì is psychologically struck and is mainly due to an alcohol problem. Nevertheless, she continues to investigate on her own. The trail leads to a mysterious Zen monastery and a private children's aid organization, which mediates Asian adopted children. Soon Louise awakens a terrible suspicion.

Back on duty after alcohol withdrawal, Commissioner Bonì is investigating the case of a missing student. Eddie, a teenager, found a badly abused young woman in a barn. Now he's dead ...

In the aftermath of WWII, German-Jewish cabaret singer Nelly has to undergo facial reconstructive surgery following her survival from Auschwitz. Without recognising Nelly, her former husband Johnny asks her to help him claim his wife’s inheritance. To see if he's betrayed her, she agrees, becoming her own doppelgänger.

Set in a Medieval town, the film has a theatrical quality, as the behaviours and actions of the characters are exaggerated almost to the point of satire. Nevertheless, its relatively dark and heavy plot yields over-the-top expressions from the actors. There is little dialogue as the story opens: a mother is seen tending to her sick daughter, whom she is then told must be sacrificed to the forest. The viewers patiently but curiously watch the mother perform healing rituals with objects like egg shells, dried plants and twigs–also recurring in the installation–until the daughter mysteriously disappears.