DEFA feature film 1965
With Angelika Waller, Alfred Müller, Ilse Voigt, Wolfgang Winkler and others.
Directed by Kurt Maetzig
In cooperation with the Filmklub Güstrow e.V. and the Theaterförderverein e.V.
Maria Morzeck is 19 years old and works as a waitress. She actually wanted to study Slavic studies and become an interpreter. But because her brother Dieter was sentenced to three years in prison for "inciting hatred against the state", the state refused to allow her to study.
Soon afterwards, Maria falls in love with the much older Paul Deister and learns that he was the judge who sentenced Dieter to the severe punishment in the dubious trial - in camera. She rejects her initial intention to use the relationship for Dieter's benefit and wants to keep love and the case separate. But she also wants to know the whole truth from Paul.
The Lexikon des Internationalen Films says: "An examination of the politics and society of the GDR that goes beyond the context of the time. The film impresses with its excellent actors and precise dialogues, its apt humor and clear-sighted social criticism." The GDR also saw it this way at the time and banned the screening of the film at the 11th Plenum of the Central Committee of the SED in 1965. It was not until 1990 that the film could be shown again.
