Herzdamen an der Elbe (Spielfilm 2013) Osterspecial

Pancake soup, Viennese beef goulash, Linzer torte: Maria Lieblich (Thekla Carola Wied), Steffi Krieg (Mona Seefried), and Carola Bleibtreu (Katerina Jacob) are on everyone's lips with their Austrian specialty restaurant "Lieblich an der Elbe" in Dresden's Elbschlösschen. But despite thriving business, the energetic trio of women in their prime are stuck with enormous operating costs. Maria and her friends struggle to convince bank director Schober (Tom Quaas) to significantly increase their outstanding loan of €300,000 before the kitchen equipment is dismantled. In their time of need, a seemingly generous benefactor comes to their aid: The gallant shipowner Hermann Augartner (Michael Greiling) offers Maria a lucrative catering contract for his Elbe fleet. This could – once successfully managed – develop into a permanent contract, solving all the three restaurateurs' financial problems. They eagerly set to work, incurring further expenses and even hiring a new chef: the somewhat gruff but highly talented Ernst Geyer (Rolf Kanies), who immediately clashes with Maria's fiery temper. While Steffi is forced to cancel her long-planned dream vacation with her fiancé Wolfgang Rühmer (Hansjürgen Hürrig) due to the circumstances, Carola feels butterflies in her stomach again after a long time: she's fallen for the local pastor, Hans Liebenwein (Steffen Münsten), and soon she's lovingly caring for the senior citizens' group in his parish. However, the euphoria of the highly motivated Lieblich crew is abruptly dampened when they discover that Augartner is a complete con man. He unexpectedly halts the expensive project with a flimsy excuse, knowing full well that he can exploit the women's calculated ruin for his own benefit: he has his sights set on the Elbe Palace. But Maria and her allies aren't about to give up without a fight. With Thekla Carola Wied, Mona Seefried, Katerina Jacob, Rolf Kanies, Michael Greiling, and others | Written by Cornelia Willinger | Directed by Thomas Nennstiel