This is a great series, which I would have said was fantastic, but the ending, although a great wrap-up, was not whiz-bang. "Murder Mindfully" is an 8 on an absolute scale. One in which "Murders in the Building" is a 3. One in which "The Bureau" is a 10 and "Spiral" and "A French Village" are 9.5's, even though I hate giving that .5 rating, splitting hairs, it's just that I want to state how hard it is to achieve a 10, nearly impossible.
And yes, all four of the foregoing series are foreign. So if you hate subtitles you can stop reading now.
But unlike the latter three, "Murders Mindfully" is not a straight drama, it's a drama with both serious and light tones, a good bit of comedy, if not the laugh out loud kind (no, I won't use the word dramedy, which is an execrable Hollywood term that renders anything it is applied to mediocre and not deserving of attention).
"Murder Mindfully is a Mafia show. You know, drug-running. And ultimately the battle is between the Serbians and the Russians.
Oh, did I state this was a German show? Yes, a German comedy. Not what you'd expect, but it delivers.
But not wholly in the first episode. I did my research, there is no critics' rating, sans studio/streamer hype the critics don't pay attention, but the public gave it a 91 on the Popcommeter, and whenever anything is in the 90s you have to pay attention, assuming there's not a concomitant terrible rating on the critics' Tomatometer. Kind of like "The Offer," which has 96 on the Popcommeter, yet only 57 on the Tomatometer. My inbox is filled with hosannas about "The Offer," however it's gotten some of the worst reviews ever, writers reviled it, if for no other reason than it bore little resemblance to reality. In other words, the wisdom of the crowd is not always right. But when it comes to a foreign series... Then again, are the foreigners rating it, are they to be trusted? I don't know, I'll just say there's very little info about "Murder Mindfully" out there.
But a reader hipped me to it.
This is the yin and yang of publicity/marketing today. You love that I found out about it, but any effort you put into making me find out about it failed, assuming Netflix put any effort in at all.
So, the star is Tom Schilling. Who reminded me of Peter Schilling. Who are both German, but not related. But I'd be lying if I didn't say "Major Tom" wasn't playing in my head during the series.
Which is only eight half hour episodes, not a huge commitment. You'll start...
And not want to stop.
However the first episode is all set-up. The deets are laid out, but the intrigue...you're not exactly hooked. But when you tune in to the next episode... You go on a ride that will have you smiling, marveling that you're experiencing something so great that almost no one is aware of. You can own it, like you owned bands back in the day, before they broke big.
So Tom as Bjorn is a lawyer. In a firm where he's the rainmaker but they won't let him make partner. They want his money, but not him. This is the ethos of rock and roll, the lack of acceptance, even though this is not a rock and roll show.
And the client that rains down all the money is Mafioso Dragan Sergowicz. Who is caught in a pickle... Well, that's putting it mildly.
So what you've got here is the classic work/home balance issue.
Bjorn Diemel is bringing home all the money, driving a BMW, living in a great house, but he's never home. His relationship with his wife has flagged and he's constantly missing commitments with his young daughter.
So, his wife sends him to mindfulness classes.
I feel the same way about mindfulness that Bjorn does. What a bunch of crap. He hesitates going in to the appointment, professes it to be hogwash, but the bearded teacher instructs Bjorn in the process and...
Bjorn starts to employ it.
And the amazing thing is you're watching the series and you start to buy in too. Live in the moment. When you have no choice, smile and let the situation play out. Yet, by time it's over I can't say I'm so convinced.
So Dragan has to go into hiding and the police are looking for him and all eyes are on Bjorn, the lawyer. He's the intermediary. He's trying to hold it all together, while trying to figure a way out of the entire enterprise himself, while trying to reunite with his wife and daughter after separating at the beginning of the series.
And it turns out he has history with the woman cop.
And all the tropes are there. The crooked cop, the double-dealing, the intimidation, the brute force. How is Bjorn going to cope with all of it? VIA MINDFULNESS!
So he's making choices he never would have made previously. He's becoming aware of his own power. But he also finds out not every strategy is a winning one. How is he going to escape?
And the Russian mob boss rings true.
And just like in "Donnie Brasco" the life of a Mafioso looks boring, never mind your body and life being in danger.
This is not heavy watching. But it is intelligent watching. It's not so complicated you can't follow it, but you can't always predict what is going to happen, and how Bjorn is going to cope. And sometimes the situations are...just downright laughable.
When I think of all the series I've seen in the past month I'd recommend "Murder Mindfully" first. It doesn't ask much, but provides plenty. It doesn't eat up your life, but will get you thinking, it will stay with you.
And it will make you forget what's happening outside your door, on your phone.
It's very German, yet the concept of Mafia shenanigans is universal.
You're gonna dig this, trust me
--
Visit the archive: lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, Unsubscribe
To change your email address this link
No comments:
Post a Comment