Streaming movies review - Miss Merkel

Miss Merkel telefilms ***1/2 (out of 5) Yeah. It’s that one. In this pair of 90-minute German TV movies from 2023 and 2024, the premise is that the eponymous retired chancellor moves to a small city, seeking peace and quiet after decades in the international political arena. They give her (Katharina Thalbach) a fictional husband, Achim Sauer (Thorsten Merten), bodyguard Mike (Tim Kalkhof) and a pug, Helmut for her life of relaxation. But rest doesn’t come naturally to such a character, and when murders occur, she lights up with the chance to start doing the Miss Marple/Jessica Fletcher thing. And she does it delightfully.

This version of Merkel is sharp, witty, energetic and a bit caustic. Thalbach looks convincingly like her character, albeit shorter. Achim and Mike urge her to steer clear of intrigue and danger, but she’s as unsinkable as Molly Brown. The one who REALLY wants her out of the way is loutish local Detective Hannemann (Sascha Nathan) whose greatest desire is to write off a suspicious death to suicide or accident despite ample evidence to the contrary. He hates Merkel’s quest for truth, because it could force him to do actual police work. The guy makes Zorro’s Sgt. Garcia and Hogan’s Sgt. Schultz look positively Holmesian, while lacking any of their charm.

The first involves the death of a preening baron whose lifestyle and multiple marriages provide a healthy array of suspects with motives. In the second, the mystery revolves around two funeral home operators who had been partners before becoming bitter rivals. Don’t worry about the details of either case. Let Miss Merkel do that. This light-hearted fare is mainly a character comedy, with sleuthing just the horse its riding.

The scripts are cleverly written, giving Merkel a slew of throwaway lines and wisecracks about famous figures encountered in her career. The digs are a big plus, and must have been great fun for the writers to insert. Merkel is portrayed as energetic and courageous, with method in her seeming madness. She also displays an admirable warmth and sincere concern for her new neighbors and cohorts. Think of a less frumpy version of Margaret Rutherford’s Miss Marple, with a touch of Lt. Columbo in her manner. I expect the real Merkel to have been amused by this fictional incarnation.

The first was somewhat more satisfying than the second. The new set of writers and director added a fantasy element to the latter that came close to jumping the shark. If you dive in, see them in order, since some characters and plotlines continue as if occurring a few months later. The films were well-cast, and the locations were lovely, giving its lead picturesque environs for her new life. Comedians joke about Germans lacking a sense of humor. I submit these two as exhibits for the defense.

(Miss Merkel, mostly in German with subtitles, streams on MHzChoice as of 10/22/24)