L'état et moi

Berlin-Mitte in the wonderful month of May. Court President Josephine Praetorius-Camusot is attempting to defend her liberal approach to the penal code against the hardliner Donnerstrunkhausen Public Prosecutor's Office. Clumsy legal trainee Yushi Lewis races back and forth between the courtroom and the examination room, falling in love with cellist Céline, the president's goddaughter, along the way. And next door, at the Unter den Linden State Opera, a new production of "Les Misérables" is being rehearsed. Suddenly, in the reconstructed city palace of the Hohenzollern monarchy in Berlin, an exhibit awakens from 150 years of deep sleep: It is the composer Hans List, who has escaped through time travel from the besieged Paris Commune. Barely has he stepped onto the smooth pavement when he slides from one bureaucratic hassle to the next. A role as an extra in "Les Misérables" at the State Opera seems to calm the situation for a while, but the police are still on his tail. Prosecutor Donnerstrunkhausen suspects terrorism. Hans List is ultimately blamed for a carriage accident and ends up being accused by Josephine Praetorius-Camusot, who, to make matters worse, also looks a lot like him. But the prosecution witnesses provide highly contradictory statements. The defendant remains silent, his identity remains a mystery. While the trial participants are lost in speculation, the State Opera's performance of "Les Misérables" is about to begin. The Minister of Justice instructs the prosecutor: Hans List must be arrested immediately after the premiere.