Frenchman Abel Tiffauges is a naive man who lives a simple life working as a mechanic. Falsely accused of being a child abuser, he is recruited as a soldier when World War II begins, but is captured soon and taken to the heart of Nazi Germany.

John Malkovich
as Abel

Armin Mueller-Stahl
as Count von Kaltenborn

Gottfried John
as Chief Forester

Marianne Sägebrecht
as Frau Netta

Volker Spengler
as Fieldmarshall Hermann Göring

Heino Ferch
as SS Officer Raufeisen

Dieter Laser
as Professor Blättchen

Agnès Soral
as Rachel

Sasha Hanau
as Martine

Vernon Dobtcheff
as Lawyer