Stefan Sandtner, a specialist in neurology, fights against the diseases of memory, but he knows no remedy to forget a woman who was more than just a colleague to him until recently. He takes a break from his clinical duties. The only patient he continues to treat is the elderly Herbert Kerber, whom he has known since childhood, and who cannot remember anything for longer than 15 minutes. He does not recognize anyone; only the war years, which he had never spoken about before, are vividly present in his mind, and he believes he is right in the midst of them. However, whether recalling these memories is even desirable is a matter of dispute among the elderly man's adult children. Is forgetting not a blessing? the son wonders, especially since it prevents any cracks from forming in the ideal image of their father. In contrast, the daughter conducts tribunals with the patient that seem never-ending, as he cannot remember what happened before.