A Husband for Life is a dramatic feature exploring the far-reaching effects of unemployment on a German family. Heinz Mattek quits his job when he is demoted to a lathehand. An ex-amateur boxer, Mattek has been employed his entire married life. Not long into his temporary retirement, he realizes that he knows nothing of the daily life of his wife and two children. For their part, they are none too happy to have him around. To relieve the tension, his wife, Marion, takes a job, but Heinz responds to this “attack” by retreating into an isolation that grows more serious the more he drinks. When Marion refuses to quit her job even after Heinz has found work, both husband and wife are forced to confront a changed situation head-on.
Director Erwin Keusch has worked for German television since 1973. He formed his own production company, together with Christian Weisenborn, in 1974. Ein Mann fürs Leben is one of two features Keusch directed in 1980; the other, Soweit das Auge reicht (As Far as the Eye Can See) was featured at the Berlin Film Festival, 1980.