Sometime in the 1930s, German expats from Munich, Martin Schulz and Max Eisenstein own and operate an art gallery in San Francisco. They are not only business partners, but the two families are the closest of friends as demonstrated by their respective oldest offspring, Heinrich Schulz and Griselle Eisenstein, being in love with each other, the expectation being that they will someday get married. When Martin and his wife Elsa decide to move back to Munich temporarily with their offspring to pursue more art for the business, Heinrich ends up staying in San Francisco to represent the Schulz family interest with the gallery, while Griselle is the one who decides also to travel to Austria to embark on a stage acting career. In Munich, Martin, who knew nothing about them including who their leader was before arriving, becomes taken in with the propaganda spouted by the Nazi Party, including being enamored with the rich and powerful men within the official ranks of the party. He is well aware after joining their ranks what maintaining an association with his old Jewish friend in San Francisco means. And although Griselle has assumed a more neutral stage name, being Jewish, especially when performing in Germany, also places her life at risk. Meanwhile, both Max and Heinrich, from a distance, do not understand what Martin has become while too being worried for Griselle's safety. One of them takes decisive action against Nazism, even if it now does include Martin.
—Huggo