Herren (2019)

Brazilian Ezequiel lives in Berlin with his wife Marta and their son Stevie. He is a capoeira instructor and recently quit his job after he was not allowed to take over the capoeira school where he had taught for years, contrary to his expectations. He earns very little selling flip-flops and football jerseys, however, so after seeing a newspaper ad, he decides to take a night job as a “driver for historic preservation.” It turns out to be a cleaning job: at night, he has to clean the historic, protected public urinals, known in Berlin as “Café Achteck.” Ezequiel is initially reluctant, since he considers this kind of work beneath his dignity. But his wife repeatedly accuses him of thinking nothing is good enough for him and tells him to finally earn some money so they can both contribute to supporting the family, so he keeps the job. Every night, he goes out on a route with Reynaldo and Jason, clearing away the day’s mess together. Gradually, he comes to terms with the work, partly because his two colleagues keep bringing him back down to earth. While Ezequiel often feels discriminated against in Germany because of his skin color, his colleagues are mostly content with their lives. Reynaldo has a German wife and is very popular in her allotment-garden community because he is helpful and cheerful. Jason hopes to make a name for himself with his band, Kreuzberg Deluxe. Ezequiel wants only the best for his family, and at first cannot understand why his son Stevie wants to train as a hairdresser—a “unmanly” profession—even though he has completed his Abitur. Given his background, he thinks Stevie should aspire to something greater. However, with support from Reynaldo and Jason, Ezequiel learns that it does not always take much to be happy, and that fulfilling traditional gender roles should not be the only goal to strive for. Having goals of one’s own is important, and Ezequiel decides to pursue his dream of opening his own capoeira school after all. He reconciles with his wife and accepts his son’s career choice.