Geile Zeiten (2006)

The film begins with a flashback to ten years earlier: Lars and Martin are two close friends, young students who are enjoying life to the fullest. They party, drink excessively, and whistle at women. Returning to the present, the story continues, focusing in particular on Martin, who feels that at the age of 30 he is going through a crisis of meaning. He has been unemployed for six months and has been left by his girlfriend, Nina, while his friend Lars is now a successful lawyer and engaged to the attractive Dani. Martin is so far behind on his rent that he is being threatened with eviction. After several unsuccessful job applications, which repeatedly fail because he lacks the necessary qualifications, Martin finally decides to finish the degree he abandoned back then. But obstacles stand in his way: too much time has passed since he was a student, so he would have to make up all the coursework unless he can prove that he is a “special hardship case.” To help him do that, he persuades his neighbor’s son, Josh, to convince a university professor that Martin is his father and looked after him as he grew up, instead of his mother. The plan works, and Martin is admitted to the exams, but he abandons them once again to attend Josh’s acting performance and encourage him from the audience. This brings Martin closer not only to Josh, but also to his mother. The two begin a romantic relationship, and Martin decides to become a writer and even to publish his first novel soon.