Germany, 1942. Anton Shtartsman stands on the threshold of unbelief, disappointed both in his country - which humbly bowed its head before Nazism, and in himself - a man silently observing how evil is being done. He is consumed by a sense of guilt and awareness of his own helplessness in the face of the “brown plague” that seeks to destroy all living things. In the hope of calming his conscience, Herr Starzmann moves to a small village, hoping to find, if not happiness, then at least peace in a fictitious marriage with the widow Elisabeth Herter, whom he promised to help in managing her life and raising children. But is a rural idyll possible in a world where every day thousands of innocent people are sent to their deaths? Anton desperately wants to atone for his guilt to those he failed to protect. But what can a simple teacher do against the Nazi machine? Everything changes when Anton learns of an underground Resistance network plotting an assassination attempt on Hitler. Despite his wife's fears, he joins the ranks of this army. But when the Nazis become aware of Starzmann's activities, he is forced to decide on a last, desperate act of disobedience that could cost him his life...