The Third Generation (1979) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The film takes place in West Germany, primarily between Berlin and Bonn. Berlin serves as the urban setting with its corporate skyline, while Bonn represents the government seats. The story unfolds in everyday urban spaces including apartments, hotels, banks, and a police-dominated cityscape, with key locations like a high-rise office, a hideout apartment, a bank, a cemetery, a Japanese restaurant, and a basement used for surveillance.

• west germany
• berlin
• bonn
• setting
• locations
• urban

The narrative is set in late 1970s West Germany, during a period marked by domestic terrorism and intense state responses. This era was characterized by student movements, contemporary political philosophies, and the interplay of corporate power with political manipulation.

• 1970s
• west germany
• time period
• late 1970s
• historical context

The film centers on a clandestine terrorist group whose plots collide with state surveillance and corporate interests. Violence becomes a tool to coerce, fund, and legitimize political aims, while loyalties shift under pressure. The theme examines how fear permeates relationships and reorganizes social circles.

• terror
• terrorism
• violence
• fear
• radicalism
• political violence

Power operates at multiple levels throughout the film: corporate salesmanship, police authority, and familial control. The character Lurz finances the terrorist group to boost his security systems, revealing how business interests can weaponize political violence. Characters maneuver through institutions, using status and money to influence outcomes.

• power
• corporate
• government
• manipulation
• authority
• business

Disguises, borrowed identities, and shifting names are central to the conspirators' strategy. Carnival disguises and hotel rooms become stages where personal and political lives blur. The film interrogates what remains authentic when people wear masks to survive in a world of political intrigue.

• identity
• disguise
• masks
• carnival
• authenticity
• aliases

Hilde Krieger is a feminist history professor portrayed by Hanna Schygulla who becomes entangled with the terrorist circle. Her intellect and composure mask a willingness to engage in radical actions, and she navigates complex personal relationships within the group while harboring ideological motivations.

• hilde krieger
• hanna schygulla
• professor
• feminist
• terrorist

August Brem, played by Volker Spengler, is the ringleader of the terrorist cell who operates as a double agent. He is secretly in contact with Lurz to finance the operation, manipulating both the radicals and their corporate backers. His deception sows mistrust and triggers fatal outcomes among the conspirators.

• august brem
• volker spengler
• ringleader
• double agent
• leader

P.J. Lurz is an industrialist who finances the terrorist group under the cover of selling security systems. His involvement blurs the lines between corporate and political power, representing how business interests exploit political violence for profit and influence.

• p.j. lurz
• industrialist
• security
• corporate
• financing
• businessman

Susanne Gast is P.J. Lurz's secretary and a key organizer of the covert plot, triggering events with a coded phrase. She balances family life with her clandestine commitments, manipulating circumstances to advance the group's plans while maintaining relationships with both the radicals and police inspector Gerhard Gast.

• susanne gast
• secretary
• organizer
• planner
• hanna schygulla

The film is a satirical allegory showing how left-wing radicals become convenient pawns for the state. The government exploits their actions to legitimize its own authoritarian measures, exposing the cynical interplay between radical idealism and state power. The ending is bleak, with idealism crushed as the state ruthlessly exploits the situation.

• politics
• satire
• state
• radicalism
• government
• allegory
• message

Berlin represents the urban corporate world and operational headquarters of the terrorists, while Bonn serves as the seat of government power. The contrast between these two cities highlights the film's exploration of how corporate interests and state authority collude, using everyday urban spaces to show how ordinary life intersects with clandestine political plots.

• berlin
• bonn
• corporate
• government
• urban settings
• west germany