The Marriage of Maria Braun

During a 1943 Allied bombing raid over Germany, Maria Berger and Hermann Braun marry in a hurried ceremony. The chaos of airstrikes frames their union as a lifeline in a collapsing world. The next day, Hermann returns to the Eastern Front.

When the war ends, Maria is told that Hermann has died, leaving her to face a future without him. She clings to his memory as she rebuilds a life in a devastated Germany.

To survive the ruined economy, Maria takes a job in a seedy underground bar catering to Allied soldiers. Her boss asks for a doctor's medical certificate, hinting that the work involves sex. The doctor who treats her patients grows addicted to morphine due to the strain.

Maria begins a relationship with Bill, a Black American soldier she meets at the bar. Her motive is to secure financial support for her family, but affection develops between them. Maria becomes pregnant.

Hermann unexpectedly returns from a Soviet POW camp and discovers Bill with Maria. She rushes to comfort him, but he coldly slaps her. Bill and Hermann fight, shattering the fragile peace.

To break up the brawl, Maria smashes a beer bottle over Bill's head, killing him. Hermann takes the fall for Maria and is sent to prison. Maria and Bill's child is stillborn.

On a train home from her doctor, Maria seduces a conductor to access a first-class car and charms Karl Oswald, a wealthy textile industrialist. Oswald offers her a job as his personal advisor.

Back in her apartment, Maria tells her mother and roommates that she needs to move into her own apartment. In a voiceover, Konrad Adenauer publicly declares that West Germany will not rearm.

To finance a future home, Maria reveals to Hermann that she has taken the job with Oswald, promising that 'My time's just beginning.' The revelation shapes their strained, fragile future.

Maria becomes Oswald's mistress, translator, and personal secretary, using her sexuality to close deals and advance in the firm. Senkenberg, Oswald's lawyer, warns that the partnership with Oswald forsakes Germany's interests, but she persists.

Hermann meets Oswald in prison and emotionally withdraws from Maria. After his release, he emigrates to Canada, telling Maria that he still loves her and hopes to reunite later.

Maria buys a large suburban house, but Oswald dies three years later, prompting a global financial shift. Adenauer announces the rearmament of Germany, signaling a new era of strength and ambition.

On the day West Germany faces Hungary in the 1954 World Cup Final, Senkenberg arrives for Oswald's will reading and reveals its terms: Hermann would get the other half of Oswald's estate only if he allows the terminally ill Oswald to stay with Maria. Later, Maria lights a cigarette, triggering a gas leak that kills both her and Hermann; whether it is accident or suicide remains unresolved. Senkenberg discovers their bodies as Germany becomes world champion.