Commissioned to make a working-class family drama for public television, up-and-coming director Rainer Werner Fassbinder took the assignment and ran, dodging expectations by depicting social realities in West Germany from a critical—yet far from cynical—perspective. Over the course of five episodes, the sprawling story tracks the everyday triumphs and travails of the young toolmaker Jochen and many of the people populating his world, including the woman he loves, his eccentric family, and his fellow workers, with whom he bands together to improve conditions on the factory floor.
Episode 1
A love affair blossoms between middle-class tool factory employee Jochen and office advertiser Marion.
Episode 2
Jochen's grandmother Oma searches for an affordable apartment to share with Gregor, a gentleman she picked up in a park. When Oma comes across an abandoned library space, she and Gregor decide to become do-it-yourself squatters and turn it into a kindergarten.
Episode 3
After the death of the foreman, the tool factory comrades hope that Franz will get promoted. However, tensions rise when the manager instead brings in an outsider.
Episode 4
Following a visit from Marion's strict mother, Jochen is pressured into proposing. Meanwhile, growing strained relations between Monika and the overbearing Harald start Monika on thoughts of divorce.
Episode 5
Upon discovering that the tool factory is being relocated, Jochen and Marion seek a new place while the workers list demands for their growing impatience.
