The fairy Lacrimosa's daughter lives with a forest farmer. If she marries a poor man, her mother will regain her magical powers. «Envy» wants to prevent this and turns the forest farmer into a hard-hearted millionaire.

The film tells the story of a young Jewish woman who, during the Nazi era, is hidden by her friend, treated in a hospital using her identity papers, and dies there. As a result, her friend loses her official identity. For the first time, the question of the behavior of friends, neighbors, caretakers, and strangers during the persecution of Vienna's Jewish population is raised. Ostensibly, "The Other Life" is a gripping play on identity, but overall, it is an astonishing demonstration of the civil courage of Alexander Lernet-Holenia (1897-1976), who, shortly after the war, addressed the then-taboo subject of the persecution of the Jews in his literary work. The ambitious film studio of the Theater in der Josefstadt, which did not last long, took up the material and filmed it with the theater's actors.

Ever since Rappelkopf was once deceived by a con man, he has become the epitome of a suspicious, stubborn misanthrope and a family nuisance. His wife and daughter, as well as his servants, suffer from his bad moods, accusations, and insinuations. The kind, alpine mountain spirit Astragalus, the King of the Alps, wants to rescue the grumpy man from his constant discontent and misanthropy. He promises to remedy his situation and makes Rappelkopf an offer he cannot refuse: he is to become his alter ego, to slip into another, better form. In the guise of his brother-in-law, the tyrant is to visit his family to convince himself of their loyalty and love. The King of the Alps, in turn, wants to appear as Rappelkopf, the living mirror of the true family despot, in order to morally purify him through self-knowledge.