Summer ’04 2006

Miriam Franz, Martina Gedeck, has just turned forty and is starting a seaside vacation on the Schlei, a narrow inlet of the Baltic Sea in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany, with her husband André and their fifteen-year-old son Nils, along with Nils’s twelve-year-old girlfriend Livia. Miriam feels uneasy about the couple’s budding closeness, worried they might take their relationship further, while André seems unconcerned about the boundaries.

One day, Nils and Livia go sailing, but Nils returns alone, saying that Livia is still out on the water with a man they met, Bill Ginger, an American with German roots Robert Seeliger. Bill’s easy charm and attention to Livia do not sit right with Miriam, who finds his flirtation with the underage girl a little weird, and André remains unimpressed by his flattery. > “money and stupidity”

In America, Bill notes, conversations tend to circle around money and stupidity, and he adds that he knows “when to stop” with the young girl, attempting to project control even as the tension grows.

Livia increasingly spends time with Bill, while Nils sits at home watching war documentaries. When Livia fails to come home one night, Miriam, feeling responsible for their summer guest, goes to Bill’s house to address the situation. Bill downplays the risk and again hints at his boundaries, but Miriam’s concern deepens. That evening, Livia returns, disappointed that the anticipated sexual encounter did not occur.

The next day, Miriam, André, and Livia join Bill for a day of sailing; Miriam and Bill take the C55 catamaran, while André and Livia take the sailboat Bénéteou. During a beach break, Miriam probes Bill’s sex life, and for a moment she attempts to seduce him, but he resists. The following day, Miriam returns to Bill’s house and they have sex; afterward, they see Livia waiting downstairs—apparently having heard their lovemaking. The moral tension intensifies as the three sail and wander between leisure, curiosity, and danger.

In the days that follow, the family spends time at a fair and visits the Landesmuseum at Gottorf Castle to see the bog people exhibit. The friction between André and Nils grows, while Miriam’s bond with Bill becomes more precarious. Bill ends the affair, admitting he is in love with Livia, and the fragile balance begins to crumble. The next day, Miriam and Livia sail again while Nils and Livia are out; a gust or miscue drives the main sail boom onto Livia’s head. She insists she’s fine, but the incident foreshadows tragedy. Miriam later tells Livia she can no longer see Bill. When Livia says she’s tired and wants to turn back, Miriam dismisses her, assuming she only wants to see Bill. Moments later, Livia reports feeling sick and collapses again.

Miriam rushes to shore with Livia and takes her to the hospital, but the girl dies. At home, Nils confronts his father, asking why he lied about the timing of the incident, implying that turning back earlier could have saved Livia. After Nils leaves, Miriam confesses that her son was right—that they were closer to shore when Livia was first struck. That night, Miriam packs her things and André drops her off at Bill’s house. Bill is reluctant to see her at first, but they talk about Livia, and Miriam tells him there is no one she’d rather be with; they end up rekindling their relationship and sleeping together.

A few years later, Miriam and Bill—now a couple—visit Livia’s mother and her new suitor in Germany. The couple had left Germany in 2004 and have since lived in the United States, traveling frequently. Livia’s mother reads them a letter Livia wrote to a friend in August 2004, in which she suggests Miriam and Bill might make a good match and could be “the happiest couple in the world.” She asks them if they are truly happy, and Miriam replies, “Yes, we’re very happy.”

“Yes, we’re very happy.”