Das Ekel (1939)

Karl Sträubler is a thoroughly obnoxious man, constantly grumbling, cursing, and complaining. The short-statured Viennese freight forwarder and wholesale wine merchant is regarded by those around him as a veritable troublemaker. He tyrannizes his family and is constantly at odds with the authorities. At the moment, the tram that squeals as it rounds the curve right in front of his house is a constant source of irritation. When Sträubler once again feels misunderstood, he writes a blistering letter of complaint to the court. The grumbler is lucky in his misfortune: his only friend, senior court officer August Weichert, intercepts the furious letter and prevents Karl from getting into serious trouble this time. August makes it quite clear to Karl that he should withdraw the letter August intercepted; otherwise, he cannot guarantee that Sträubler will have to spend some time behind bars this time for his verbal outbursts. This only makes Karl angrier, and for the first time he insults his friend, too, threatening to report him for embezzlement if he does not forward the letter to its intended recipient at the court. Leni Sträubler, the daughter of the big little hothead, also suffers under her father’s tyranny. She is in love with auto mechanic Heinrich Weichert, August’s son, but is supposed to marry the rather oily Ferdinand Scheibler instead. Ferdinand’s father, Matthias, works in the same line of business as Karl: the wine trade. Like Leni, Scheibler junior has no desire for this arranged marriage, since his heart belongs to Gusti Pitzinger, the daughter of master barber Anton Pitzinger. Karl couldn’t care less about any of this, so he promptly places an engagement announcement for Leni and Ferdinand. This is too much for the rest of the family. Leni Sträubler resists and storms out of the house to seek—and find—refuge with the Weicherts. Even Karl’s hitherto fairly patient wife, Karoline, packs up and leaves the house with their son Fritz. From then on, things go rapidly downhill for Karl. The letter is delivered to the court, and Sträubler has to answer there for insulting a public official. Too miserly to seek legal counsel, he believes he is his own best lawyer and is sentenced to 14 days in prison. There, the stubborn wholesale wine merchant soon finds that his quarrelsome ways get him nowhere and has to learn to follow orders. One day, a cheerful musician named Willibald Sperling is moved into his cell, and his positive outlook gradually changes the grumbling troublemaker’s ways. Karl realizes that his stubbornness and love of arguing have become a real burden to his family, and resolves to become a better person. When Weichert visits Karl in his cell and gives him a thorough dressing-down, Karl is the one who shows insight for the first time and backs down. Meanwhile, Karoline Sträubler has submitted a petition for clemency, securing Karl’s early release. When no one from his family is waiting for him outside the prison gate, he is genuinely afraid for the first time that no one wants anything to do with him anymore. But back home, a festive meal is already laid out, and the whole family has gathered around the table, including the newcomer, Heinrich Weichert. Now the former nuisance is no longer bothered by the squealing tram as it rumbles noisily around the corner.