Einfach Blumen aufs Dach (1979)

The Blaschke family in Berlin has twins, bringing the family to six. Their family Trabant is now far too small. Then Hannes, the father, a trained high-voltage electrician, and his brigade colleagues at VEB Machinery and Material Reserves find a decommissioned GAZ-13 Chaika, a state limousine used for ceremonial occasions. They buy the black luxury car, which had previously served high-ranking political figures, for its scrap value of 782 marks and 76 pfennigs. Mrs. Blaschke initially rejects the car vehemently, but gets used to it quite quickly. A bus driver by profession, she is accustomed to handling large vehicles, whereas Hannes, a Trabant driver, has a very hard time with it at first. Whether ordinary people are even allowed to drive such a state limousine becomes a question for politicians, all the way up to the responsible minister, and is then summarily decided by his secretary. The former state car brings its new owner preferential treatment and unexpected honors: policemen who turn a blind eye to traffic violations, People’s Army soldiers standing stiffly to attention, Pioneer groups, and invitations to cocktail receptions. While his wife Maxi sees the state limousine merely as a useful means of transport, the ordinarily modest Hannes annoys his colleagues with his new airs. They give him a fitting lesson in humility by “simply painting flowers on the roof.”