Maria is torn between two worlds. At school she is an ordinary 14-year-old girl girl with typical teenage interests. But at home with her religiously fanatic family she lives according to the teachings of the Society of Saint Pius X and the traditional interpretation of Catholicism. Everything she does and think is before God. And since Lord is strict watcher, the girl is living in constant fear of committing a transgression. While her mother adheres to severe upbringing to teach her daughter to follow the righteous path, Maria’s father often abstains and prefers to not be involved during the critical junctures. Maria desperately wants to give everything to everybody and she shortly turns out to be caught in the middle. How could she reconcile her feelings for her classmate as she swore to remain faithful with the heart to God? Will the Lord require to make an unbearable sacrifice for the recovery of her brother?

It was summer of 1968, student riots, the Rolling Stones, bell-bottoms, mini-skirts, the sexual revolution. While Germany is entering a new era of freedom, 14-year-old Wolfgang against his mother’s will with the filing of a jealous stepfather, enters the camp for troubled teens in remote area Freistadt in Upper Austria, in the northern part of the Mühlviertel. Outwardly welcoming owner of the Brockmann house undertakes re-education of the rookie , but instead of going to school or to class, he has been forced to work hard.  Wolfgang is against the labour in inhumane conditions and insidious educational methods of petty tyrant, and he is getting beaten half to death as a reward.

In the middle of the action there is seventeen-year-boy Stefan, wakes up in the hospital after unsuccessful attempt to commit suicide. Further, we finf out all the circumstances preceding leading up to how he got here. As it turned out, not so long ago, everything was normal in the life of the main characters. As long as he realized his homosexuality.That’s when he realized that he is in love with his friends. Suddenly unfathomable feeling turns his head and he was forced to admit to his friend about his real orientation. He decided to make it in not an usual way – he kisses his friend. It is not difficult to predict the reaction of the boy. Roughness and the sharpness of the friend hurt the protagonist and he takes father’s car in despair to start it and never stops.

The movie tells the history of 11-year-old Tilda, who adores his grandfather Amandus. When he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and parents, in her opinion, wanted to get out of him, putting to the retirement home, she takes things into her own hands and escapes with his grandfather to the fairy-tale Venice. The city  is chosen for a reason. After almost half a century ago, there Amandus proposed to Tilda’s grandmother. Now granddaughter hopes that when they will be there, her grandfather will be better, and at least he will remember something.

I am very pleased with the ending, it is perhaps the best part of the movie.