Goodbye Lenin!

The film opens in East Berlin during October 1989, highlighting the lives of Alex Kerner and his family, including his devoted mother Christiane and sister Ariane. The family is haunted by the absence of Alex's father, who left them for a mistress in the West in 1978.

Feeling disillusioned by East Germany's 40th anniversary celebrations, Alex decides to participate in an anti-government protest. During the event, he meets a girl he is unable to connect with due to interference from the Volkspolizei.

The situation takes a dark turn when Christiane witnesses her son's arrest at the protest and suffers a heart attack due to the stress. Despite being in a desperate situation, no one comes to her assistance, and she is left fighting for her life.

While visiting Christiane in the hospital, Alex meets Lara, a nurse who turns out to be the girl he saw at the protest. This encounter sparks a romantic relationship between them, with Lara being a Soviet exchange student.

As the political landscape shifts dramatically, Erich Honecker resigns and is followed by Egon Krenz, leading to the eventual opening of borders and the fall of the Berlin Wall. This new reality creates opportunities and challenges for Alex and his family.

With free elections taking place and capitalism taking root, Alex secures a job at a West German company, selling and installing satellite dishes. He forms a friendship with his Western colleague, Denis Domaschke, navigating the changing landscape together.

Due to the closure of her university, Ariane starts working at a local Burger King. In her new job, she meets Rainer, the manager, and they quickly begin a romantic relationship, bringing further change to the household dynamics.

After eight long months in a coma, Christiane finally awakens, but her doctor warns that any emotional shock could trigger another heart attack. Concerned for her well-being, Alex resolves to keep the significant societal changes a secret from her.

To protect Christiane from the harsh realities of a transformed East Berlin, Alex and his family create an elaborate deception. They dress in vintage clothing, use their old furniture, and repackage Western food in familiar jars to maintain the illusion.

As Christiane begins to notice odd occurrences, like a massive Coca-Cola advertisement nearby, Alex and Denis scramble to keep her unaware. They produce fake news broadcasts using old East German footage to explain the changing scenarios around her.

The family races against time to find Christiane's life savings stored in East German marks before the conversion deadline. This race adds to the pressure of maintaining the deception while dealing with their own personal struggles.

When Christiane steps outside for the first time, she is overwhelmed by the striking changes, including neighbors discarding old furniture and brand new cars on display. In an effort to shield her from the truth, Alex and Ariane quickly pull her back inside.

During a visit to their family dacha, Christiane unveils that her husband didn’t leave for a mistress, but to escape oppression for resisting the ruling party. This revelation complicates family dynamics and reveals the hidden past Christiane had kept from her children.

Alex reconnects with his estranged father, Robert, who now has a new family and lives in West Berlin. Despite his new life, Alex persuades him to visit Christiane as part of an effort to bridge the gap in their broken family.

Just two days after Alex wraps up a final fabricated news report about newfound freedoms, Christiane passes away, having outlived East Germany itself. At her last moments, the family scatters her ashes using a toy rocket, symbolizing their freedom and loss in a transformed world.