Commissioner Ellen Norgaard returns from maternity leave in “Usedom-Krimi”. The first day at work turns into a nightmare for her: Your child is kidnapped. The colleagues do everything in their power to find the little one.
Usedom – A mentally ill kidnapper puts the police under pressure in the new “Usedom crime thriller”: The woman has the son of Commissioner Ellen Norgaard in her power.
Ex-prosecutor Karin Lossow (Katrin Sass) is of course also involved: Ellen is like a daughter to her and she also knows the kidnapper from before. The 14th episode of the “Usedom-Krimi” can be seen this Thursday at 8.15 p.m. on Das Erste. The star of the crime thriller is Marion Kracht, who credibly portrays the dangerously disturbed kidnapper with fine facial expressions. Kracht’s remarkable game easily compensates for weaknesses in the script.
It’s Ellen (Rikke Lylloff’s) first day at work after her baby break. With a heavy heart she hands over her little Jesper to the childminder Britta (Ulrike Röseberg). The young woman spends time with three children in a playground on the cold winter beach of Usedom. Suddenly an unknown woman joins them. She engages Britta in a conversation and quickly wins her trust.
In order for the stranger to kidnap Jesper, it takes some coincidences and a highly unlikely reaction from the childminder – probably the biggest weakness of the script: Because by chance, her own child Karl has a diaper full and Britta asks the stranger to take care of Jesper and the third child, while she goes to change diapers with Karl. Which childminder would simply leave the children entrusted to her to a stranger? At first it is also unclear whether the stranger kidnapped Jesper in a targeted manner or whether she happened to take the inspector’s son with her.
Ultimately, these weaknesses in the plot are secondary – Marion Kracht, who once became known to a large audience in the 1980s with the ZDF family series “These Drombuschs” and “A Home for Animals”, convinces with reduced gestures and facial expressions as a kidnapper. The viewer quickly notices that the woman behind the friendly facade is by no means harmless.
The kidnapper lies as if printed, she serves up other fairy tales, she manipulates her fellow human beings, she makes use of them. She fluctuates between malicious and overly lovable. Behind all this seems to be a deep dissatisfaction with yourself and your own life. But why is she kidnapping Jesper?
The case develops into a family drama and somehow everything soon revolves around coming to terms with the past. Director Felix Herzogenrath succeeds in linking the numerous storylines without confusing them. Karin knows the kidnapper from their youth in the GDR. Her relationship with her Polish colleague Lucjan Gadocha (Merab Ninidze) will also be put to the test. And then she wants to get rid of her house. She offers it for sale.
What does Marion Kracht say about her part in the “Usedom crime thriller”? “I am infinitely grateful for the role.” The audience can be revealed: It appears again in the episode after that (November 18). dpa
