Media: shockwaves

Berlin (AP) – The murderer's face remains hidden for several minutes. You can see it from behind, from side to just above the mouth or in a motorcycle helmet. From the beginning, however, we can see that he is still a very young man.

The camera follows his perspective until the point of action, then shows his face too. Benjamin, the 18-year-old murderer, is completely upset, disturbed, out of himself. Only a very small number will be surprised, after all, he just killed no less than his parents. The young man does not want to flee; He drives directly to the nearest police station and stands. But first he fainted after a panic attack in front of officials' feet

This is how the mini series "Shockwaves" begins, which begins on Arte this Friday (8:15 pm). In four parts she talks about Swiss criminal cases. All are based on real events and are as cruel as they are fascinating. Each episode deals with a story that is autonomous. Whenever there are other actors and other directors behind the camera. What unites the four episodes is the coolness of the act; the misunderstanding that causes them. And young people still occupy a central place, whether as authors or as victims.

Benjamin, masterfully played by Kacey Mottet Klein, is both at the same time. The young man is suffering from an unspecified mental illness. He is plagued by murderous fantasies, which he projects more and more on his parents. The thought process at the act holds Benjamin in his diary. He calls the motivations, describes his inner turmoil and explains the decision. The language is poetic, the argument rigorous. Shortly before the murder, Benjamin finally sends the flying leaves in a huge envelope to his French teacher Esther Fontanel (Fanny Ardant).

This episode, entitled "Journal of Death," describes the psychogram of a dysfunctional family relationship. In her style, she recalls a little television series "crime", which is based on the same volume of storytelling by the lawyer and writer Ferdinand von Schirach. The Sechsteiler made a splash in 2013 by confronting the German public with a relatively new detective novel concept – known in jargon as "Whydunit". It's not the question of who is the murderer, but why he committed the crime.

"Journal of Death" is in the same vein, but raises another question of why. It is not important to understand why Benjamin killed his parents. The reason for this is the 18-year-old in his diary himself, clearly: "I had to kill her, father, because he's a poor guy who disgusts me deeply, my mother, to save her, as a widow with a having to live a criminal son. "The crucial question is rather: why did he make his French teacher a confidante? Not only does she employ the investigators, but also Mrs. Fontanel herself, who begins to doubt himself.

As cool as the idea is to introduce a new thriller format to the television audience, the disadvantages are obvious. The plot undulates a bit. A great tension does not really want to happen. Conflicts challenge the intellect rather than satisfy visual desire. In the literature, they would therefore be in better hands than on the television screen

This applies to all parts of the series "shockwaves", although they focus on a different aspect of criminal cases. In the episode "Journey Without Returns" (July 20, 21:25), it is the preparation and implementation of a collective suicide, that commit several members of the Sirius Order . "Escape to the Mountains" (July 27, 8:15 pm), however, focuses on the failure of a car theft after a relentless pursuit begins on a frozen ground. And "The Fall Mathieu" (July 27, 9:45 pm) deals with the consequences of abuse. Although the victim escapes his executioner, he struggles to cope with everyday life.