In 1983 East Berlin, dedicated Stasi officer Gerd Wiesler begins spying on a famous playwright and his actress-lover Christa-Maria. Wiesler becomes unexpectedly sympathetic to the couple, and faces conflicting loyalties when his superior takes a liking to Christa-Maria.

这是一个薄雾未散的清晨，四周一片寂静。在一片菜地中，某张萝卜叶上，有一枚毫不起眼的虫卵。不久，里面的新生命颇见而出。这是一只心情愉悦的苍蝇，但是它的快乐和 新鲜感并未 持续太久，因为头顶上的计数器分明显示它只有一分钟的生命。一分钟？如此之短，该如何度过？正当它惊慌失措之时， 一张死去前辈曾用过的清单飘到它的手上，上面清楚列出了一分钟之内它应该做到的事情。比如：填饱肚子、唱歌跳舞、挑战极限、躲避天敌追杀、恋爱生子、救死扶伤、结交朋友、乃至成名种种。在接下来的一分钟里，这只苍蝇开始了它短暂而辉煌的一生……
德国动画导演Michael Reichert以夸张的线条和幽默的笔触，为我们描绘了一只苍蝇在短短的一分钟生命中的各种精彩。或许我们在哀叹人生的平庸，或被生活压迫得气喘吁吁时，可以获得些许感悟和慰藉。 一分钟能干什么？也许不过是电脑的开机时间，也许不过是发一条微博的时间。如果你的人生只有一分钟，你会何去何从？但是对于只有一分钟生命的苍蝇来说，那意味着匆匆的人生。

The setting is on a floating platform where a group of evenly and carefully placed men live. Each man is aware that the platform is not stable and in order not to fall to their deaths, they maintain a careful balance of weight to prevent the platform from tipping too far and cause them all to fall.

A school teacher discusses types of government with his class. His students find it too boring to repeatedly go over national socialism and believe that dictatorship cannot be established in modern Germany. He starts an experiment to show how easily the masses can become manipulated.

Lola receives a phone call from her boyfriend Manni. He lost 100,000 DM in a subway train that belongs to a very bad guy. She has 20 minutes to raise this amount and meet Manni. Otherwise, he will rob a store to get the money. Three different alternatives may happen depending on some minor event along Lola's run.