The captain of a ship in port has been entrusted with a secret government mission. He gives leave to the crew, but orders them to report back each morning. As the days go by, and the sailing date still remains a secret, the crew are thrown into a state of increasing uncertainty. The film concentrates on two crew members whose experiences are coloured by the omnipresent reality of the ship which is about to depart.
The wife of a local dictator gets a miscarriage during a failed assault by rebels. The dictators' brother suggesst to present the newly born baby of one a the dead rebels as his posterity.
The adventures of a top hat, as it changes hands (or heads) and moves through various levels of society.
Tones of experimental music lead us into the National Museum of Ethnology in Leiden. An extensive collection of exotic masks is hanging on the walls while the night watchman makes his rounds. But not for long: the masks are waiting for the moment when they can reveal their imposing selves to the viewer. A collection of masks from different parts of the world shows its true face: shocking, charming or sinister. Max de Haas brings the faces to life through his camera-eye. Impressive light-and-dark effects and a chaotic music track enable the masques to tell their own stories, even when nobody is wearing them.
A father struggles with the administration when he comes to register his child.
