“Set during World War II , somewhere in Romania , a German soldier is found dead near a village and the local authorities must find the culprit or they will all be shot the following morning in reprisal. There's no way to identify the guilty party but there is Ipu ( Gérard Depardieu ), the madman of the village, whom the town leaders, led by Father Johanis ( Harvey Keitel ), pressure to claim responsibility for the soldier's death and die to save their skins. A farce seen through the eyes of a young village boy, we witness the comedy and horror of human nature as the villagers manipulate one another — even the ones you'd least expect...” - more at Wikipedia