quick check
“Tatort” from the Black Forest
Attack in the Vineyards – this thriller is gripping to the end
Scene from the Black Forest “crime scene”: Commissioners Berg (Hans-Jochen Wagner) and Tobler (Eva Löbau) question Beate Schmidbauer (Victoria Trauttmansdorff) about the course of events at an on-site appointment.
© SWR/Benoit Linder / ARD
A crime, three suspects and in the end one perpetrator: The “Tatort” rerun from the Black Forest tells a classic criminal case – and interweaves it with clever ideas about the use of DNA analysis.
- 5 out of 5 points
- A classic and thrilling thriller to the last minute
What’s the matter?
On the way home from a wine festival in the Kaiserstuhl, Beate Schmidbauer (Victoria Trauttmansdorff) is knocked down and raped between vines. DNA traces of the perpetrator can be found on the victim, but since the hands of inspectors Franziska Tobler (Eva Löbau) and Friedemann Berg (Hans-Jochen Wagner) are legally tied, they have to rely on a voluntary DNA test. Only knowledge of the DNA secured from the victim narrows down the circle of perpetrators.
Three men in particular are suspicious: On the one hand, there is the uptight policeman Mario Lewandowsky (Marek Harloff), who never gets a chance with women. Then there is single parent Klaus Kleinert (Fabian Busch), who has already lost custody of his daughter once before. And finally there is the hairdresser Victor Baumann (Roman Knizka), whose marriage is in serious trouble. Tobler and Berg are investigating in the men’s environment – which has consequences for their private lives.
Why is this “crime scene” worthwhile?
“Rebland” deserves praise for finally telling a criminal case that is stringent from start to finish. However, this “crime scene” links this thriller with exciting thoughts about the use of DNA analysis. The evaluation of the DNA reveals to the authorities numerous details about individual people: eye, hair and skin color as well as age. Does this information concern the authorities – and can’t it lead to group-based discrimination? To what extent should the state be allowed to intervene in the private sphere of citizens to fight crime?
At least politically, this question has already been decided: In the credits, the viewer learns that in December 2019, i.e. after the completion of this film, the extended DNA analysis was introduced in Germany.
What bothers?
There is little to complain about in this no-frills crime thriller (written by Nicole Armbruster, directed by Barbara Kulcsard) that is gripping right to the end.
The commissioners?
After the investigators Tobler and Berg ended up in bed together in their last, unfortunately rather unsuccessful case, the private life of the two is completely left out this time – which benefits the stringency of the plot.
Turn on or off?
This “crime scene” is also worth repeating – tune in.
The “Tatort” episode “Rebland” was first broadcast on September 27, 2020. ARD repeats the case on Friday, August 19 at 10:15 p.m.
Inspectors Berg and Tobler also investigated these cases: