14-year-old Manuela, after her mother's death, is sent to an aristocratic boarding school that only accepts female students. The school is governed by a headmistress obsessed with discipline and order. In this harsh environment, Manuela becomes increasingly withdrawn; she cannot actively participate in classes, receives poor grades, and isolates herself from the other students. The only person she can connect with is the young teacher Elizabeth von Bernburg, who approaches the students with love and understanding. Manuela's interest in Miss von Bernburg gradually turns into an impossible love, causing chaos in the school. 

Set in an atmosphere where the footsteps of the Nazi regime are heard, this radical film, which features only women in the roles of screenwriter, director, and cast, is considered one of the first examples of explicit queer storytelling in cinema. In the Criterion Collection edition of 2021, author Amanda Lee Koe described it as follows: "This film belongs to women who are trying to find themselves—and each other—in spite of repressive structures."

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