The king locks the miller’s daughter, Lisa, in a room full of straw to turn into gold in just one night. If she doesn’t succeed she would be executed.

Biggy is 18 years old and getting trained as a salesperson. She lives in a small town. In a greenhouse she meets Wolle, a 20-year-old locksmith. The two get closer and fall in love but their wild life comes to an end when Biggi tells Wolle that she is pregnant. Since Wolle dreams about freedom and adventures, he flees from the responsibility, starts to work in another town and gets involved with another girl. Thereupon, Biggi gets an abortion and starts to study at the university. She also becomes acquainted with another man, but soon breaks up with him. Since Biggi and Wolle are unhappy without each other, they get back together and start anew.

Klara Sonntag, probation officer, believes in the good in people. Everybody deserves a second chance. This is how she tackles her work. The judge Thomas Aschenbach, with whom she is secretly together, is at her side.

A notorious criminal is committed to a psychiatric ward pending a determination of his sanity. With the help of a young woman, one of his theft victims who has fallen in love with him, he manages to escape. He wants to build a middle-class future with her, but she tries to persuade him to pull off one last big heist.