GDR, August 1989: Hanna and Andreas became a target of the secret police and had to give up their plans for their future studies and desired professions. Instead, they face arbitrariness, mistrust and reprisals. Their only chance for a self-determined life lies in fleeing across the Baltic Sea. Fifty kilometres of water separate them from freedom - and only a thin connecting rope around their wrists saves them from absolute loneliness.

Hannah and her husband, the insurance agent Reinhard Petzold, initially lead a quiet life in Swabia. However, when daughter Lina goes to Berlin for a weekend and Hannah and Reinhard secretly follow her, this throws the orderly family life into disarray. In Berlin, the couple stumbles from one chaos to the next...