The trilogy deals with prudish morality, the first sexual experiences of the young women, and the desire for values, underscored by the association with Nazi Germany of the mother and many of her contemporaries.
The older adults are all haunted by the ghosts of their actions in the war, and a newer generation who experienced none of it are coming of age, passing judgement on the decisions of their predecessors while trying to find their own place in Germany a decade post-war.
Due to her hypocritical past, she has raised them with puritanical standards to be ideal trophy housewives, and steamrolls over their desires to push them at eligible and rich men, regardless of suitability.
But, married life to the fussy and frigid Wolfgang is not what Helga dreamed it would be, and she descends into desperate focus on becoming the perfect housewife as a path to attaining the affection and love she desires.
Her mother pairs her with prickly Joachim Frank (Sabin Tambrea), who initially rapes her, though their shared gloominess and like spirits draw them back to each other.
The very physical Monika finds healing through the new rock ’n’ roll dances from America and a fun, no-strings relationship with musician Freddy Donath (Trystan Pütter).
Spending her days surrounded by hysterical and disturbed women in the mental institution she works in, Eva has become distrustful of emotions and afraid of their potential effect, preferring to suppress strong feelings which scare her.
Married to a patient, poor, and working as a football goalie, Rudi is a wildly inappropriate choice who cannot offer Eva the type of life she wants, no matter how much she wants him.
[3] Filming locations were the duck pond at Rudolph-Wilde-Park, Haus Dannenberg in Heiligensee, on the Havel in Krienicke-Park in Haselhorst, Eiswerderbrücke, Hansaplatz, Palais am Funkturm, and Schloss Marquardt, among others.