Fraulein 1958

In Cologne near the end of World War II, Foster MacLain, an American prisoner of war, escapes and finds shelter with Prof. Julius Angermann. Angermann’s daughter, Erika Angermann, is not immediately welcoming, but she hides the American from the German soldiers who are searching for him. MacLain leaves only when it seems safe to do so.

Not long after, a bomb destroys the house, killing [Prof. Angermann]. Erika heads to Berlin to live with her cousin Karl Angermann. Karl shares his home with lodgers, Fritz Graubach and Berta Graubach, who are outspoken supporters of the Nazi cause. When the Russians seize the city, Erika takes shelter in the attic to avoid violence, but Berta Graubach betrays Erika’s existence to save herself. A drunken corporal, Sgt. Grischa, climbs the stairs, and Karl is killed while trying to intervene. The Russian pursues Erika to the roof, where he slips and dies, and Erika is charged with his murder.

Col. Dmitri Brikett is drawn to Erika and saves her life, though he expects a sexual reward. Erika escapes to the American-controlled sector of the city with Lori, a nightclub piano player. There, she encounters the Graubachs again, who now claim they oppose the Nazis but run a brothel and want to employ her. She flees, but they have already registered her as a prostitute with the American authorities. They pursue her, but a kindly military policeman, Cpl. Hanks, blocks them.

Meanwhile, Foster MacLain continues his search for his wartime benefactors and eventually locates Erika working in a nightclub. When he offers to help, she asks him to find her fiancé Lt. Hugo von Metzler. MacLain uses his connections to locate Hugo, who has become a changed, embittered war veteran living in a makeshift shelter with another woman, not happy to see Erika with an American. Hugo asks for the engagement ring back so he can buy an artificial arm, and Erika gives it to him before leaving.

As MacLain spends time with Erika, he falls in love and asks her to marry him and move to the United States. She agrees, but the passport application looms with the prospect of denial due to her prior registration as a prostitute. She almost gives up, but when the papers land on the desk of the processing officer, the situation shifts: Col. Dmitri Brikett is involved, and the matter is not resolved there. In the end, a compassionate turn of events occurs when the officer processes the applications and, influenced by the circumstances, grants Erika the documents she needs, allowing them to pursue a life together.