Urlaub vom Leben (2005)

Rolf Köster has worked as a cashier at a small bank branch for years. Every day passes just like the one before. He has a thirteen-year-old daughter who would rather write in her diary than talk, and a six-year-old son who has to wear a bicycle helmet because he is constantly running headfirst into walls. His wife organizes the entire family life, while Rolf stays in the background. But he wonders whether he, who supposedly has “everything,” is really happy. Then Rolf unexpectedly gets a week off. He decides not to tell his family and to leave the house as usual. Rolf Köster begins living a double life. Alongside Sophie, a vivacious taxi driver, he sets out to explore his surroundings. On this journey of discovery, he gets to know his neighborhood and the people in it anew. By chance, he spots his wife in a supermarket. Köster has lived with her for years, but lately he no longer knew her or her life. Now another man is waiting for her outside the store. This “vacation from life” opens Köster’s eyes and makes him realize that he has, in fact, stopped living altogether. At the end of the week, Rolf Köster returns to real life and has regained his curiosity.