Commissario Montalbano Vol. 6 - DVD

Content: Commissario Salvo Montalbano (Luca Zingaretti) is back to keep law and order in the fictional Sicilian seaside town of Vigàta in two new films. One would think that the sun, the sea, the good food and the beautiful women would ensure that Montalbano leads a relaxed, laid-back life. But after having to deal with trigger-happy senior citizens, a kidnapping and some cryptic puzzles in his first new case, he is confronted not only with a faceless corpse in the second case, but also with very private nightmares. For Montalbano seems to be slipping right into a deep mid-life crisis that has him dreaming of his own death - and even in death, he still clashes with his gruff medical examiner Pasquano. Not a particularly good time for the Commissario...

Before the spin-off series The Young Montalbano is launched, the older version of the popular novel character penned by Andrea Camilleri is first allowed to convince fans of his very special investigative methods. However, the fact that this time there are only two films to watch and not four, as in the previous sets, is a shame on the one hand. On the other hand, the two episodes from 2011 offer such good entertainment with their mixture of suspense, humor and drama that fans of the stubborn bon vivant are happy to settle for just two films. Despite the murderous stories, the beautiful shots of the filming locations in Sicily invite you to dream of a holiday by the sea. And the amusing nightmares that plague Montalbano at the beginning of The Days of Doubt alone make this sixth box set a must for all fans.

Little has changed in the structure of the cases. A bit of a breath of fresh air blows through The Hunt for the Treasure, as here Montalbano has to deal with a stranger who wants to take on the genius investigator by means of cryptic riddles. Who is behind this stranger, should be clear to crime fiction professionals after some time. Nevertheless, this episode has a very special tension and also very beautiful settings, which makes the almost 100 minutes running time fly by. Also, the fact that The Days of Doubt is a very personal episode for the Commissario, in addition to the case itself, adds a nice touch of variety.

And this is what the individual episodes are about:

DVD 1: The Hunt for the Treasure

First Commissario Montalbano must have two elderly, trigger-happy siblings arrested, then he investigates the murder of a well-read drifter. Without suspecting it, he gets involved in a strange treasure hunt with deadly riddles. Behind it hides an unusual kidnapping case and a supposed volunteer helper increasingly turns out to be a villain. (Text: Servus TV)

DVD 2: The Days of Doubt

Commissario Mopntalbano experiences a midlife crisis and dreams of his funeral. However, the ahre life doesn't look any better for the Italian detective. Then a faceless body is found on a small drifting boat. According to the investigation report, the opera was poisoned before the face was demolished. The only bright spot in the investigation is Montalbano's meeting with Lieutenant Laura Belladonna. (Text: Servus TV)

Picture + Sound: Nothing has changed in the technical realization of the series, even with the sixth DVD box. The sound, which is only available in German, is presented in a coherent 2.0 stereo mix, with the central and very powerfully mixed dialogues setting the tone. The picture pleases with its engaging and atmospheric coloration and its decent image sharpness, through which even small details are clearly recognizable especially in the bright moments. Small weaknesses exist only in the darker scenes, where slight blurring and minimal image noise are visible.

Extras: Bonus material has also this box unfortunately not to offer.

Conclusion: Commissario Montalbano Vol. 6 has indeed only two new cases of the popular Italian commissioner to offer. But they are again so worth seeing that one as a fan gladly accepts this smaller dose. The two new films present themselves not only in terms of content, but also technically in the usual good quality. And although the sixth DVD box again has no bonus material to offer, there is a total for this set again: Absolutely recommended!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp