The Lübeck merchant Friedemann owes his crippled figure to a wet nurse "devoted to drink". He lives a secluded life with his three simple-minded sisters and his bedridden mother, loving only the theater and music. Only Gerda, the unhappy wife of the district commander of Rinnlingen, makes him blossom...

Ulrich Mühe
Johannes Friedemann
Maria von Bismarck
Gerda von Rinnlingen

Dieter Mann
Oberstleutnant von Rinnlingen

Inge Keller
Konsulin Friedemann

Christine Schorn
Henriette Friedemann

Jenny Gröllmann
Friederieke Friedemann

Carmen-Maja Antoni
Pfiffi Friedemann

Dietrich Körner
Schlievogt

Lissy Tempelhof

Margit Bendokat

Johannes Terne
Manfred Gorr

Johanna Schall
Petra Gorr

Bernd Michael Lade