Randale (1983)

The 22-year-old Andrea, a student of social pedagogy, arrives one day at Schloss Bucheneck, a closed institution for girls with behavioral problems in southern Germany, to gain practical experience on site. Her ideas are highly idealistic, but she soon realizes that theory cannot be reconciled with harsh reality. She wants her approach to be shaped by understanding and peaceful cooperation, but what she encounters there is entirely different: from the moment she arrives, Andrea is confronted with constant rebellion and defiance among the girls, who react to the constant checks and restrictions imposed by the care staff. Distrust of all the educators is the order of the day. Sometimes the girls’ actions are harmless, such as refusing to eat or displaying bad table manners; at other times, they resort to outright violence. Power games, rivalries, and provocations are part of this daily “business,” a kind of survival training according to the Darwinian motto “survival of the fittest.” Even Elisabeth Schuritz, the group leader, who is normally assertive and resolute, can barely keep the situation under control. Soon the young women are doing nothing but the title’s “rampage,” and the situation escalates. Two of the girls manage to lower themselves out of a window of the “closed” institution—quite literally—and escape to freedom. But they cannot enjoy life beyond the institution’s walls for long: one falls into the hands of a pimp, who “sells her off” to migrant construction workers, while the other is hit by a car as she is pursued by the police. Meanwhile, tragedy strikes at the institution. When Andrea shatters a 16-year-old girl’s fantasy of a strong father who would save her, she takes away the teenager’s last remaining support and lifeline. The resident then tries to set herself on fire. Deeply shocked by the consequences of her well-intentioned actions, Andrea decides to leave the institution.