The last “crime scene” with Florence Kasumba is not a classic crime thriller. Rather, it is a socially critical look at the delivery services industry.
Ghost Walk: Charlotte Lindholm (Maria Furtwängler) and Anaïs Schmitz (Florence Kasumba) investigate the delivery services industry Photo: Christine Schröder/NDR
Last weekend at a birthday party in Berlin-Neukölln. Suddenly the question arises whether it is okay to order something on the Internet. But, above all, to accompany the humid and joyful party, the “poor delivery people” had to carry heavy packages of wine to the 4th floor. You can see it everywhere: delivery drivers carry too many packages with them, they are always in a hurry, they have a low-paying job – and that is exactly what the new crime thriller “Tatort” from Göttingen is about.
There is also a birthday party at the beginning here. Criminal director Gerd Liebig (Luc Feit) celebrates his 60th birthday with his colleagues at the police station. Charlotte Lindholm (Maria Furtwängler), once transferred to Göttingen for punishment, and Anaïs Schmitz (Florence Kasumba) are there, as is Liebig's wife Tereza (Bibiana Beglau). But damn, the gift from his colleagues for his boss is missing; It had been ordered online and had not yet been delivered. It was an express order, says Nick Schmitz (Daniel Donskoy), medical examiner and husband of Anaïs, with cruelty towards the harassed young driver.
He storms off, looking completely exhausted, like he's out of place. He runs uncontrollably towards a group of people. People die. Lindholm and company quickly arrived at the accident site, including Tereza Liebig, who works as a doctor at the hospital. The driver is seriously injured and in a coma. The investigation goes in different directions: Was it a tragic fatigue accident? A massacre? The two investigators disagree on this (and disagree anyway) and remain so until the end.
The driver of the car is called Ilie Balan (Adrian Djokić), he works in a parcel service and is Romanian, like the rest of his colleagues. He works as a subcontractor for another subcontractor named Mischa Reichelt (Christoph Letkowski), who of course denies any blame. As the head of the parcel service: “These are not employees of our company.” From a purely legal point of view, that is true. But in terms of morality?
“Crime scene” in Göttingen: “ghost walk”, Sunday, February 11, 8:15 p.m., ARD and in the ARD Media Library
It is not a classic police thriller.
The truck is examined: the brakes are very worn. And the driver appears to have lived in the car. And there is a plastic bottle of urine: the “toilet”, because there is no time for a real one. “I didn't even tip him,” Lindholm says worriedly.
Let's put it this way: this “crime scene” is not a classic police thriller, because for us, the viewers, the matter becomes clear relatively quickly. “Ghost Ride” offers a realistic depiction of the conditions of an industry in which exploitation is the order of the day.
It is clear that all of us, as customers who place orders, are part of the problem. This is a well-produced, precisely observed, ruthless and complex social drama (we leave a plot here for reasons of suspense). A lesson in addictions of all kinds, in hurt feelings, in psychological abysses, in grievances in society and family, and yes, this is a film to be ashamed of.
And a strong departure from a couple of researchers. Because Lindholm, the loner, wants to return to Hannover. And Anaïs Schmitz stays in Göttingen and rises up the career ladder, but the crime fans aren't having any of that. Kasumba, who has been there since 2019, unfortunately leaves the “crime scene”.