Before lightning strikes

East German film about the history of Red Orchestra, a real life German pro-Soviet spy ring created after the rise of Hitler that turned into a resistance movement led by a leftist Nazi officer, Harro Schulze-Boysen, and Arvid Harnack.

After Jochen saves police officer Erich's life, the two men become close friends and Erich helps Jochen get a job working for Berlin's local train system. But Jochen falls into the hands of the beautiful West Berlin agent Ellen, who convinces him to participate in acts of sabotage against the trains. All of a sudden, Jochen is making a lot more money and even Erich's former girlfriend Inge becomes interested in him. But everything begins to unravel when Erich observes his friend's illegal activity on one of his nightly rounds.

This film is the first of a two-part historical and biographical portrait of the communist politician and anti-fascist Ernst Thälmann. In early November 1918, Ernst Thälmann is an unwilling soldier serving on the western front. As the revolutionary movement at home is threatened by the betrayal of the Social Democrats and fissures in the working class, Thälmann calls on his fellow soldiers to put down their weapons and unite with the workers in the communist struggle at home. Thälmann’s qualms about which side he is fighting on continue, but when the local police attempt to prevent a shipment of provisions and supplies from reaching the people in Petrograd, he intervenes and the ship is unloaded. With this moment of clarity, Thälmann continues to follow his political convictions and joins the workers at the Hamburg uprising in October 1923.

In the middle of the 19th century, almost one in three women who gave birth died of puerperal fever. The Hungarian doctor Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis also observed these terrible occurrences in his clinic in Vienna. He came to the conclusion that it was primarily the unhygienic conditions in the clinic itself that led to this disease, as his colleagues were constantly shuttling back and forth between the anatomy department and the delivery room. He tries to convince the doctors of the absolute necessity of thorough disinfection by washing their hands with chlorinated lime. He meets with fierce resistance from his colleagues until he himself sets up an exemplary clinic in Budapest.

This film takes place during the Seven Years' War. The Prussian Major von Tellheim has become engaged to the Saxon noblewoman Minna von Barnhelm. After the war, the King - in an unwarranted move - deprives the major of his honor. Von Tellheim becomes impoverished and, filled with shame, breaks off his relationship to Minna. An innkeeper in Berlin, who is a police informer, makes the Major move to a shabby little attic because he cannot pay his debt. In the meantime, Minna has also arrived at the inn. She and her lady's maid Franziska are questioned and spied on by the nosy innkeeper. Minna has followed her beloved Tellheim and she now cunningly manages to elicit a new declaration of love from him...

Soldier Ignaz Wolz returns from WWI with an immeasurable hatred of capitalist war profiteers. He decides to start his own revolution, but tries to stay away from the organized class struggle. He steals from the rich men and divides the wealth among the poor. One day, Wolz is arrested and sentenced to life in prison; seven years later he is released due to mass protests. More than ever, it is hard for him to fit in. He severs ties with his former companions, who reject his ideas, and leaves Germany.

The young and rebellious Werther is passionately, but hopelessly, in love with Lotte. Although he knows that she is married to somebody who can offer her a secure future, Werther tries to be near her. Lotte cannot decide between these two men. She eventually rejects Werther, who does not survive her decision.

Historical drama portraying the life of German baroque architect Andreas Schlüter.

The school authorities want to read success stories in director Joachim Faber's reports. But they cannot simply be produced on an assembly line. Pupils, for example, use the wrong tone. The matter draws circles until the superiors finally talk about refusal to work. Director Faber is caught between the efforts to resolve the conflict with pedagogical means and the pressure from above.

Several men have been murdered lately, mostly rich lovers on their way to meet their mistresses with gifts of fine jewelry. To fight this scourge, King Louis XIV decides to create a special court named "La chambre ardente", designed to find and punish the perpetrators of such heinous crimes. An unexpected person, Mademoiselle de Scudéry, the famous poetess, will find herself entangled in the web of a criminal intrigue linked with the jewel murders, along with a a goldsmith, his daughter and her fiancé...

Ten-year-old Brigitte spends holiday with her father Peter on the Baltic Sea and everything is perfect until they meet strange and beautiful woman on the beach.

In a small village in West Prussia in the 1870s, Germans, Poles, Gypsies and Jews live together as neighbors. One night Johann, a German mill-owner, secretly opens the dam gates and floods the mill of his Jewish rival Levin. After his business is ruined and his calls for justice go unanswered, Levin leaves town.

The story of Hanna, a woman who will not take life’s setbacks and knock-downs sitting down. Instead, she takes them in her stride, picks herself up and marches onward. This is a woman who continually draws new courage from her inexhaustible will to live. Whatever losses and uncertainties come her way, she remains true to herself.

Based on the records of the Nuremberg trial of the chemical giant IG Farben; a story about the collaboration between international corporations and Nazi scientists, whose research contributed to the death of millions. The chemist Dr. Hans Scholz lives through a tortuous political transformation and maturation process. Eventually, he adopts political neutrality and closes his eyes to the fact that the poison being produced in his factory is being used in the extermination camps. Standing before the judges at the Nuremberg trials, he must face the fact that he is implicated in the deaths of millions in the gas chambers of the concentration camps.

To justify their invasion of Poland at the start of WWII, Nazi high command hatches a secret plan: six Polish men from an SS training camp are sent on a special mission to the town of Gleiwitz, to fake a Polish raid on Germany. The ‘provoked’ Germans will thus launch a ‘counterattack’ on Poland.

Vienna, 1813-1819: Beethoven (played by Donatas Banionis) is at the peak of his fame. Orchestras all over the world play his music, but he lives modestly and is dependent upon private patrons. Nagged by his patronizing brothers, spied upon by officials for his republican beliefs and faced by his progressive hearing loss, the composer becomes more and more isolated. Seeman’s poetic film explores the joys, heartbreak and artistic spirit of the great composer as he works on his Ninth Symphony.

Albert Hauptmann is an out of work waiter in Cologne who is often confused with a former Captain of the Nazi Army. Albert uses this to his advantage and becomes the Director of the Montan Corporation, and a member of the West German Parliament. Herr Karjanke, the real Captain, learns of Albert’s ruse, and wants to claim his "rightful" position in Parliament. But Karjanke cannot come forward until his politicking "Doppelganger" succeeds in passing an amnesty law for war criminals. When Albert is finally brought before a judge on charges of fraud, he learns that this own amnesty law does not apply to him.

Carola has been running the family-owned circus alone since her husband’s death, but she suddenly finds herself at odds with her three adult sons who are also performance artists and want to have a say in how the business is run. The family discord leads Carola to turn her back on the circus, leaving the three inexperienced sons in charge. This turn of events forces the family to learn to work together or face bankruptcy.

An American transport squadron led by former General Lee supports the French colonial army in Vietnam in return for high pay. Originally their mission was only to help the wounded, but as the advance of the Vietnamese liberation army puts the French under increasing pressure, they also fly ammunition - in return for even more money and in defiance of international law. Chief pilot Bryk refuses to fly, secretary Flessy becomes the unscrupulous general's mistress after one lover after another fails to return from a mission, and the rest of the squadron is shot down during an ammunition flight. The French army shows up at the camp to arrest the interpreter Thao for espionage. Bryk rescues her and flees with her to the liberated part of Vietnam.

The "Concordia" trading company in Würzburg is a secret headquarters of the MID, a secret service agency of the US Army. For years, espionage, sabotage, and diversion operations originated from here in order to undermine the Socialist Republic of Germany. A favorable moment for a military attack approaches and plans are developed. These plans are placed in the hands of Major Collins, who keeps them in a safe. Hansen has worked for him for many years, but also for the Stasi as a double agent. Security Chief Colonel Rock knows there is a leak, but Hansen has passed every test thrown at him. He is trying to deal with his current assignment: acquiring the plans so they can be made public. His mission is to get them out of the safe and into the GDR without getting caught.

At the beginning of the 1960s, a German turns up on behalf of the NATO in the British village of Rocksmouth. NATO wants to establish a naval base in Rocksmouth, but first, the German envoy has to salvage an old ship wreck. In 1942, the "Princess of India" was supposed to bring children to safety in Canada but was sunk by a German submarine at departure. 58 people were killed, most of them children.

The aircraft mechanic Hans Bertram is an incorrigible apron hunter who boasts that he can get around any woman. He even makes bets on it. But then he falls in love with the new colleague, the budding engineer Helga Nonnert. He fails to conquer them by storm. After many tangles and fun episodes, she manages to heal him of his gallant frivolity.

The son of a working-class man, Harry Brenner studied medicine at the ABF and quickly made a career as a doctor in Berlin. His lifestyle and his demanding wife swallow up a lot of money, so he takes on any part-time work. After a gross dereliction of duty, he is transferred to Bothenow. He meets Eva again, whom he knows from his student days and who now works here as a nurse. The two hit it off and Dr. Brenner slowly begins to change his life. In doing so, he increasingly comes into conflict with his wife. Their different views on life eventually lead to a separation.

A Swabian shoe factory comes into the possession of the GDR as an inheritance. The new managing director "from over there" tries to reorganize production methods and working conditions from a socialist point of view. The idea is an appealing satirical "comparison of systems" that suffers from somewhat uninspired direction.

This film is set in a medieval mill town in the Harz mountains. The greedy and brutal millman and his accomplices, the castle steward and the mayor, set fire to a forest mill that the farmers used for processing their grain. Without their mill, the farmers must now rely on the millman's services. When the farmhand Anna uncovers the millman’s crimes, he swiftly detains her and a young miller, Jörg. The forest spirits have a different plan, however, and they free the young couple with the charge to rebuild the ruined forest mill and turn things around for the villagers.

When Prince Vain got his shirt fixed, he proclaims that he had slain two lizards in front of the tailor's house - "two in one strike". When the tailor swats seven flies at once, he sows himself a banner saying "seven in one strike", and together with his bird he starts a journey into the world to pronounce his deed.

Research results of enormous value are stolen from the experimental laboratory of a chemical company in the fictitious town of Bärenfurt in the GDR and seized at the Berlin sector border. The trail leads to the agent "Haas" at the Bärenfurt municipal theater. Captain Jentsch is at the theater to uncover his identity and arrest him. A murder takes place during the "Fiesco" premiere. Many people are suspects, including the head of the theater, Born, who is engaged to the actress Vera and has a conspicuously apolitical attitude. It is no easy task for the security officers to distinguish between reality and appearance in this milieu. Through precise work, they succeed in unmasking the perpetrator and arresting him after a chase through the theater.

Kasper Mai, an export merchant and comrade with a “clean” record, discovers he is the prince of Hohenlohe-Liebenstein. His royal grandmother designates him as the heir to her estate. A private trip to her reveals that she does not want a NATO airbase built on her land. The GDR and his grandmother thus find a common interest, and a clever lawyer from the East works against other family members looking to settle their debts with the estate money.

The year is 1940 and Nazi Germany is at the height of its military prowess, having captured most of Europe and eyeing the Soviet Union to the East. The Russian military command suspects hostile intent from Germany and so arranges for its spies to infiltrate ranks of the German military and the SS. Alexander Belov is a Russian spy, who travels from Soviet-held Latvia to Nazi Germany under an alias of Johann Weiss. His mastery of the German language, steel nerves and an ability to manipulate others help him to use his connections in the SS to ascend the ladder of the German intelligence. He uses his position to identify sympathetic Germans, who help him to procure vital intelligence, and to help local resistance movements in their collective fight against Nazism.

Under political pressure, a West German radio station stages a radio play about a Russian invasion of West Germany. A handsome fee convinced the unemployed Anton Wiesel to take on the direction. At the same time, the driver Harry Kyritz received an inheritance: a decrepit barge with which he intends to become an entrepreneur. His acquaintance with Madeleine Müller, the daughter of a coal wholesaler, comes at just the right time. But so does Mr. Müller, because he is broke. So he throws a big party to sell his daughter as his last profitable asset. Harry has a good chance when the radio plays a radio play about a Russian robbery. The guests take it as a factual report and flee to the cellar. Harry reveals his true financial situation, but Müller accepts him anyway - as a model worker for the Russians. But when the mistake is revealed, Harry is out of the running in favor of a wealthier son-in-law.

Co-pilot Horst Schubert is a braggart and a true Don Juan. Thus, he tells young Ilse that he is in fact an "aircraft commander". This assertion brings about an embarrassing situation, for he suddenly meets her onboard his new work place, an IL-14 charter plane where Ilse acts as a stewardess. It gets worse, however: During a stop in Varna the police appear because Horst’s former lover Madelon has vanished. At home, meanwhile, his landlady has her hands full with her lodger’s current and former playmates. Ilse decides to put an end to this mixup and since the dull captain of the plane, Richard, makes no move to confront his co-pilot about his unstable private life, the smart stewardess appeals to the rest of the crew to help her teach Horst a few lessons in love.

Who doesn't know the dream of an unexpected million-dollar inheritance? For microbiologist Dr. Wolf, it seems to come true when an American lawyer visits him to tell him about the death of his distant uncle in the USA. Wolf is to receive an inheritance worth millions, but on one condition: He must continue to run his uncle's factory in the USA. The natural scientist is also offered the prospect of a research position at Camp Detrick. But after the memorable visit, Wolf discovers a listening device in his apartment. When he informs the People's Police, more and more inconsistencies come to light.

Since childhood Peter Schlönzke dreams of a career as a TV presenter. His great role model is Heinz Wäscher, who is always looking for talented young entertainers for his popular show. Peters mother announces her shy boy for an audition, which, although mercilessly goes wrong, but brings him a job as a cable helper. He meets the popular entertainer from the unlikely side: as a bus scrapper who despises his audience. When Peter stumbles into the limelight by chance, he has a unique chance - as successor to scrubber.

Three chemists unveil “Substance L,” a pesticide capable of eradicating all life without harming material assets. When Dr. Zichy, haunted by his work on Zyklon B, dies in a car crash and the lethal vial vanishes, colleague Dr. Cramm uncovers a child’s poisoning. To suppress the scandal, the corporation and justice system commit him to an asylum, until his assistant Barbara risks everything to expose the truth.

The Berlin Volkseigene Betrieb (VEB) Komet is planning a company outing. Willi Redlich, member of the party committee, votes like the others: The relatives stay at home. But he doesn't dare tell his wife Susanne. So she does the work of renting the "Waldschlösschen" restaurant for him - without his knowledge. When Willi wants to book the seats, everything is fully booked and he switches to the "Sonnenburg" opposite. Meanwhile, word has gotten around among the women that they are excluded. They plan a counter-event. On the day of the excursion, both groups are sitting in their inns and the women make sure that they can still celebrate together.