A mother and her daughter have lived trapped within themselves for many years. The reason is a terrible act long ago. Hannelore Hoger and Nina Hoger impress in a psychodrama.
Berlin – Almost 20 years ago, a young woman was kidnapped while on vacation in Denmark and released for a ransom. She was deeply traumatized by this act and never let go, not even her mother. How both deal with it is shown in the drama “Back to the Sea”, which can be seen this Monday at 8:15 pm on ZDF.
Mother Charlotte (Hannelore Hoger) and daughter Mara (Nina Hoger) have lived together and yet alone since this kidnapping. Nobody comes to visit, they don’t go anywhere. There are hardly any normal days – all attempts at therapy, from psychologists to faith healers, have so far failed. Mara has lived frozen since the kidnapping, has no drive and has thoughts of suicide. Nobody can reach her anymore, even the mother does not succeed. Charlotte is angry and disappointed about it. She just continues to function, runs – as best she can – her bookstore in Hamburg. But it is becoming increasingly clear that both need a break from each other.
Therapy at the Baltic Sea
A new voluntary therapy at Dr. Sahling (Christina Große) is supposed to help, she lives in a beautiful country house on the Baltic Sea and realizes that with Mara body and soul keep each other captive.
While taking a walk, Charlotte thinks she recognizes the voice of a man as that of the kidnapper and blackmailer – it is the wealthy Danish building contractor Kjell Mortensen (Jens Albinus). Charlotte chases him as far as Denmark, breaks into his house and paints slogans on the walls. He surprises her and falls hard. Charlotte is arrested and assigned the public defender Johansen (Morten Sasse Suurballe), who reluctantly represents her. Now is finally being investigated – because a kidnapping is statute-barred after 20 years.
Hannelore Hoger (80, “Hotel Heidelberg”) is allowed to play a little “Bella Block” here. Mainly, however, she is a believable desperate mother who just wants to help her daughter – sometimes with too much pressure. The daughter, in turn, is played by Hoger’s daughter Nina (60, “For Heaven’s Sake”), both of whom act together in front of the camera for the ninth time.
Hoger’s strengths only at the end
It works pretty well and intensely, even if Nina Hoger is only allowed to show what she is made of in the last third of the film – the two women do not play against each other. The thriller elements in the film, on the other hand, seem to be thrown together, the German subtitles for scenes spoken in Danish are a bit annoying.
Author Fabian Thaesler (“Bella Block”) and director Markus Imboden (66, “At home in the mountains”) have staged a drama that is as sensitive as it is gripping, with multi-layered main characters; The film was shot in Travemünde, Hamburg, Copenhagen and on Fehmarn.
At the very end, Mara can finally remember – the therapeutic approach seems to be the right one. It is not so crucial for them to know that a perpetrator has been convicted. Much more important is that Mara is no longer afraid of him and can finally find her way back into her life. dpa
