Situation Hopeless — But Not Serious

Captain Hank Wilson and Sgt. Lucky Finder crash-land over Germany on 27 November 1944 and touch down in the sleepy town of Altheim, where the fateful day foretold by Wilhelm Frick begins to unfold. Frick, who reads his horoscope with a twinkle of curiosity, senses that something out of the ordinary is about to happen. The two fliers seek shelter in his cellar, initially discovered by Frick who contemplates turning them over to the authorities; however, when one of them claims German roots, warmth replaces suspicion, and they all start singing German songs together. Frick resolves to shield them from the authorities, opting to hide them rather than betray them.

Frick slips away to his day job as the pharmacist’s assistant at Drogerie Neusel, where his boss, Herr Neusel, receives news on the radio about the Allied advance and Aachen’s fall, signaling that the war’s end may be near. Outside, American troops push through Altheim, and the two men remain in Frick’s cellar with his cats, discovering new hobbies that give them purpose. One begins sketching cartoons, while the other works with metal, fashioning a rudimentary lockpick that allows them to unlock themselves just as Frick returns. Finder retrieves Frick’s pistol, and a tense exchange ensues about what would happen if they left. In a surprising turn, Frick chooses to keep them, even going so far as to shackle them to ensure they stay until the war ends, all while holding the key that would free them.

As a small act of kindness, Frick brings a delicate Christmas tree down to the cellar, a symbol of normalcy amid chaos. The narrative time-jumps to VE Day in May 1945, when the radio proclaims the war’s end, and the trio’s strange arrangement persists through the changing tides of occupation. Frick’s quiet domestic world shifts as Finder grows a beard and Frick negotiates with the local American quartermaster for extra supplies, trying to survive in a landscape of shortages and shifting loyalties. In their bid to keep life lively, Frick’s mislaid truths about the war surface, and he theatrically claims the Americans have captured Strasbourg, handing an orange stamped with “California” to Finder to sow skepticism as to what is real.

Finder’s longing for companionship leads Frick to seek outside connections, and he glimpses the interior of the Daffodil Club where Lissie, a madam, offers a selection of companions. He is drawn into her orbit, and though his visit unsettles her, she radios in to alert authorities, and Frick is ejected. The strain of keeping the two men hidden grows, and Frick’s world briefly spirals: he ends up in a hospital, escapes on a stolen bike, and returns to a dilapidated home that seems frozen in time. A police attention closes in as Finder steals Frick’s luger pistol and vanishes into the night, triggering a chase that leads them to an ancient, ruined castle perched above a river.

The pursuit continues through daylight as the pair seek refuge in large drainage pipes, where they unearth a fragment of a newspaper discussing President Truman and the Iron Curtain, hinting at a broader geopolitical shift looming over their improvised drama. Authorities close in on Frick’s house, concluding that he has imprisoned two men, and the reality of their predicament sinks in deeper for everyone involved. In a bid for freedom, the two men attempt to steal a small boat but are spotted by Wanda, Wanda, the owner’s daughter, who invites them into a world of chaos and danger. She offers passage across the Rhine for a substantial fee, even as a separate riverboat appears carrying SS troops—only to reveal that the scene is part of a film, not a real threat. The crowd erupts into a chaotic fistfight that shatters the illusion and exposes the truth of their caper.

Ultimately, the two Americans determine it’s time to return to San Francisco, boarding a flight of fancy back to the United States just before Christmas. In a quiet, comic coda, Frick reappears at their bar, not to reclaim his captives but to serve drinks at their party, a final reminder of the odd bond forged in a world turned upside down. The film closes on a note of enduring humanity, humor, and the uncanny connection that survives even amid war’s absurdity and the blur between captivity and companionship.

Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 11:08