Jorgos (Rainer Werner Fassbinder) a Greek immigrant moves to Germany for a fresh start and employment opportunities. Initially many of the local men greet him openly and he attracts the interest of Marie (Hanna Schygulla) and Elisabeth (Irm Hermann). Eventually this interest turns into disdain when one of the native underemployed citizens, Paul (Rudolf Waldemar Brem) leads a group of the local workers to assault Jorgas when he begins dating Marie. Eventually the curiosity of the local citizenry turns to hatred of Jorgas as he represents less employment for them ad a threat to their content native existence.