Sauerkrautkoma - Blu-ray

Film: The Eberhofer Franz (Sebastian Bezzel) is back on duty. He has just finally got his relationship with his girlfriend Susi (Lisa Maria Potthoff) on the right track, when the mayor (Thomas Kügel) puts a spoke in his wheel again: he transfers the Eberhofer to Munich. What a horror! Here, the inspector from the tranquil town of Niederkaltenkirchen has to share an apartment with Rudi (Simon Schwartz), is supposed to work in a team with other police officers and, to make matters worse, his new superior is Elisabeth Mayerhofer (Nora Von Waldstätten), with whom he had a violent clash during the semolina dumpling affair. As if that wasn't bad enough, an old schoolmate makes a pass at Susi and the car of Eberhofer's dad (Eisi Gulp) is stolen - only to turn up a short time later with a dead body in the boot. But of course a Franz Eberhofer doesn't let all this upset him.

Sauerkrautkoma is now the fifth film adaptation of the popular Eberhofer crime novels by Rita Falk. The previous films have attracted over 2.4 million visitors, mainly in Bavaria, to the cinemas. However, the steadily increasing success - also in TV broadcasts - ensures that the films are increasingly being shown in cinemas outside the Weißwurst equator. So it's no wonder that Part 5 is the most successful film in the series to date, with over 1 million cinema admissions throughout Germany. The director is once again Ed Herzog, who has adapted the book with assured routine. Big surprises are not to be expected in the production, rather, the inclined viewer gets exactly what you can expect after four Eberhofer films.

The beginning, however, is a little bumpily implemented. There are a few very amusing dialogues and funny moments, but overall the humor seems a bit forced and too overdone. But before anything like real disappointment can set in, the film finds its pace and its very special tone and then works just as well as its predecessors. The actual criminal case, however, once again becomes a minor matter. Rather, it is about the wonderful weird characters, especially Franz Eberhofer, who is embodied by Sebastian Bezzel simply congenial.

It's the interplay between Bezzel and Simon Schwarz that provides some really hearty laughs this time as well, especially when it comes to a rather involuntary cohabitation. The relationship problems between Franz and Susi, on the other hand, seem to slowly die down a bit. However, the film gets its act together towards the end - although we won't go into that here, as we don't want to give away one or two nice surprises. But this much can be said: Franz and Susi's relationship is what the last ten minutes are dominated by and what makes for some quite wonderful moments here.

Sauerkrautkoma is not the best installment in the Eberhofer series, but it offers enough quirky fun and dry wordplay to console over a few minor flaws. If you liked the first four films, you will have a lot of fun here again - and are already looking forward to part 6, which will come to the cinema in 2019. Absolutely worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: Again, a good overall impression remains. The image is absolutely clean and has decent overall sharpness. Contours are clearly drawn and even smaller details come out well. The coloration seems a bit overblown, but this seems to be a deliberately used stylistic device. The audio is available as a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix, which comes across as fairly subdued for long stretches, but sounds pleasantly powerful, especially during the musical interludes. Good.

Extras: The bonus material is really worth watching. The centerpiece of the extras is a making of (approx. 31 min.) that goes into the history and production of the film. In addition, there are some amusing behind-the-scenes clips showing Susi looking for a partner (approx. 1:10) and Rudi undercover (approx. 1:15 min.), offering a Thai course by Leopold (approx. 2:33 min.) and an Eberhofer film quiz with Sebastian Bezzel and Simon Schwarz (approx. 5:14 min.). In addition, there are two music videos and the trailer for the film. Good.

Conclusion: Sauerkrautkoma is not the best, but the most successful part of the so far five-film Eberhofer series. A murderous fun with great ensemble and quirky humor, which should not be missed by fans of the previous films. The Blu-ray can convince in terms of picture and sound, as well as the extras all along the line. A very clear buy recommendation!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp