The Goethe Institute's Recall Deutschland in the 50s film festival is opening in Ho Chi Minh City this week.

The two-month festival, held to mark German Year in Vietnam, begins July 6 with Helmut Käutner's Himmel ohne Sterne (Sky without Stars).

The film, produced by Neue Deutsche Films and released by Bakros International in 1955, centers on a love affair between a West Zone guard, played by Erik Schuman, and a young war widow, Eva Kotthaus, who has snuck across the border.

The affair is endangered by interference from East and West Zone guards, culminating in a heart-wrenching climax.

The film will be shown at IDECAF.