“A biography set in East and West Berlin in which singer-songwriter Bettina Wegner, born in 1947, sings about life in the GDR, her feelings of being uprooted in West Berlin, and looks back with humor and honesty on a life of resistance.” (Part of the Panorama program 2022.)

While recovering from a mental breakdown, the young Rita Seidel recalls the last two years, in which she fell in love with Manfred, a chemist who is ten years older. As Manfred became disillusioned with his opportunities in East Germany, he moved to the West. Rita followed him there and tried to persuade him to return but soon realized he would never do it.

The film made the band Puhdys a household name in East Germany. The band performs four songs in the film, all of which drew heavily upon specific western pop songs. The film’s enduring popularity led to a stretch of waterfront on the Rummelsburger See (Rummelsburg Lake) in Berlin-Lichtenberg, near where the boat scene was filmed, to be renamed Paul und Paula-Ufer (Paul And Paula Shore).

Paul’s new apartment was on the third floor of Singerstraße 51 in Friedrichshain. Paula’s apartment across the street was demolished, as shown in the film. A supermarket now occupies part of the site.

Berlin Ostbahnhof can briefly be seen in some of the outdoor scenes, as it is only a short distance from the Singerstraße. The supermarket where Paula worked is located at what was then Leninplatz (now Platz der Vereinten Nationen).