Crime scene: child benefit

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Episode of the series Tatort
Original title Child benefit
Country of production Germany
original language German
Production
company		 NDR
length 97 minutes
classification Episode 140 ( List )
First broadcast August 22, 1982 on ARD
Rod
Director Hartmut Griesmayr
script Herbert Lichtenfeld
production Rudiger Humpert
camera Günther Wulff
cut Annemarie Bremer
occupation

Kindergeld is a German television thriller from NDR and was broadcast on German television on August 22, 1982. It is the 140th episode in the crime series Tatort and the second and last case of Chief Inspector Piper ( Bernd Seebacher ). Piper is involved in blackmailing a businessman and a violent crime related to it.

action

Herbert Hoffmann is on business in a Spanish holiday resort during the main holiday season. Since there are no more vacancies, he wants to leave. He accidentally catches the Spanish maid Ines when she is thinking about stealing money from his wallet. He then blackmailed her and demanded sexual compensation for not informing the police or the hotel management. Hoffmann changes his departure plans and stays in the bungalow of his friend Harald Lieck, who is in financial difficulties, in order to be able to spend some time with the chambermaid. While Lieck, who can make good use of Hoffmann's rent, stays with his girlfriend Ulrike Hentsch, Hoffmann lets Ines come to and pretends to be Lieck. Meanwhile, Ines' family learns that they have allowed themselves to be coerced into sexual acts. Approx. Nine months later, the married Lieck, long back in Hamburg, received a blackmail letter telling him to pay DM 10,000 for his “Spanish adventure”, otherwise it would be uncomfortable for him.

Lieck, still in financial difficulties, seeks Ulrike, even she cannot explain who wants to blackmail him. He pretends to be willing to hand over the money, but his pursuit of the Spanish blackmailers Alberto and Paco fails. They want to take revenge for the scraps of paper in the envelope left by Lieck. The next day, the Spanish blackmailers kidnap Lieck and identify themselves as Ines' relative. They tell him that she is pregnant and the money is for the child. Lieck realizes that they are obviously mistaking him for Hoffmann, but promises the blackmailers that they will pay the requested sum in a few days. Lieck borrows money from his lover Ulrike and assures her that he has good business prospects for a future together, which he gives Antonio and Paco as a deposit. Shortly afterwards, Hoffmann received an anonymous ransom note from Lieck in which he was asked to pay DM 100,000. Hoffmann, who is back in Spain, visits Ines and agrees to pay the money. In the evening, to their surprise, he hands the family DM 20,000 down payment. When the money is handed over, he informs the family about his real name, Ines' family reacts surprised because they had been looking for Harald Lieck in Hamburg. Hoffmann understands who is actually blackmailing him.

Meanwhile, Alberto and Paco in Hamburg are confused and do not understand why Lieck paid when someone in Spain at the same time pays a much higher sum apparently voluntarily to the family. When the blackmailers let the money transfer fail, Lieck pursued them. He visits Antonio in his apartment, who apologizes for beating him and asks him why he has not cleared up the misunderstanding, since Hoffmann is the father of Ines' child. Lieck says goodbye without providing an answer. Shortly afterwards, Hoffmann called Antonio, where he found out that only DM 10,000 were required and that they had addressed their claim to Lieck. Hoffmann then wants Ines' family's too much paid money back and indicates that Lieck could also be considered a father. Since Hoffmann has also learned that Lieck is coming to Spain to get his money back from the family, Hoffmann observes his bungalow, but is attacked by Antonio and Paco. Meanwhile, Lieck wants Ines' family to give him the money that Hoffmann had paid “too much”, but the family throws him out. Meanwhile, Hoffmann sneaks into Lieck's bungalow when he suddenly comes home. Lieck would like to have DM 90,000 from Hoffmann, but Hoffmann, for his part, demands the amount he has paid “too much” to Ines' family. Lieck threatens Hoffmann to go to the police and report him for sexual assault. Hoffmann, on the other hand, laughs at Lieck and mocks him.

Lieck asks his lover Ulrike to come to Spain to help him, but she refuses. Drunk and desperate, he attacks a person in the evening in order to get "his" money. The next morning, Commissioner Piper is given a business trip to Spain by his superior. The colleagues in Marbella had turned to the German police about a German attempted murder of a compatriot. In Spain, Piper hears Hoffmann in prison that Lieck is seriously injured in hospital and is unlikely to survive. Hoffmann denies the act, but Piper has already determined that Lieck blackmailed him. He also holds against Hoffmann that Lieck had incriminated him as a perpetrator while he was conscious. Piper only learns from Ines' family that Lieck has gone into the blackmail for unknown reasons. Although the case seems clear, the disappearance of Paco Piper puzzles. He shadows the house of Ines' family and watches one of the members go into hiding with Paco. Although the seriously injured Lieck sticks to his statement that Hoffmann is the culprit, Piper comes up with a plan. Together with his Spanish colleague, he looks for Paco in his hiding place and simply tells him that Lieck has woken up and named the perpetrator. Paco immediately confesses, but says that it was self-defense, Lieck had demanded money from him and attacked him.

Audience and background

When it was first broadcast, the episode reached 16.93 million viewers and thus a market share of 46.00%. It was filmed in May and June 1981 in Hamburg, as well as in Estepona, Casares, Puerto Banus in Spain.

criticism

TV Spielfilm rated the film as mediocre and judged: "A Trabi among the old crime scene thrillers".

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Child benefit on tatort-fundus.de, accessed on August 30, 2015.
  2. ↑ Child benefit short review at tvspielfilm.de, accessed on August 30, 2015.
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