VAN DER VALK - SERIES 1, EPISODE 2: ONLY IN AMSTERDAM (ITV)

Marc Warren (Beecham House, Hustle) stars in the title role of Van der Valk, a 3 x 90-minute crime drama which aired this spring in the U.K. on ITV.

« You like certainty, don't you? You're very black and white. I can relate to that. »

Van der Valk is based on a character created by Nicolas Freeling (1927-2003), an English novelist who spent most of his life in continental Europe and admired Belgian author Georges Simenon. Simon "Piet" Van der Valk, a cynical and intuitive Amsterdam police commissioner married to a French woman named Arlette, appeared in 11 books from 1962 to 1989. The "Dutch Maigret" was popularized by the Thames Television series Van der Valk (1972-1973, 1977, 1991-1992) starring Barry Foster. Composed by Jack Trombey (1) and played by the Simon Park Orchestra, its theme music (called Eye Level) became #1 in the UK charts in 1973.

Filmed entirely in Amsterdam last year, Van der Valk is produced by Company Pictures (Agatha Raisin) with Dutch company NL Film (Penoza), Germany's ARD Degeto (Der Donnerstags-Krimi), Masterpiece (United States) and All3Media International. Scriptwriter Chris Murray (Agatha Raisin, Midsomer Murders), who exec produces with Michele Buck and wrote the three episodes, brings back the detective for a modern and international audience. One of the notable changes of this new series is the absence of Arlette Van der Valk.

Piet Van der Valk lives on a sailing barge and holds his briefings in a café. He leads a team composed of Inspector Lucienne Hassell (played by Maimie McCoy), his second-in-command and close friend, the laid-back Sergeant Brad de Vries (Luke Allen-Gale) and the young Lieutenant Job Cloovers (Elliot Barnes-Worrell) － who's eager to impress and likes stats. Their boss is the Chief Commissaris Julia Dahlman (Emma Fielding). Hendrik Davie (Darrell D'Silva) is the hard-drinking, full-mouthed pathologist.

A young woman named Aamina Jabara is murdered in a hotel room and her wound is very peculiar. A strange notebook leads Commissaris Van der Valk and Inspecteur Hassell to a museum the victim regularly visited because of an interest for mysticism and religious erotica. Aamina worked as a nurse in a drug addiction clinic. A nun shared with her the same interest for religious erotica. The family issues of the Jabaras disrupt the investigation to an unexpected level.

Only in Amsterdam is basically an episode of Midsomer Murders or Lewis (Chris Murray worked on both) in the Dutch capital with some action, a bit of humour and nice twist and turns. The friendship between Piet and Lucienne gets developed. We learn (a bit) more about Dahlman and Brad provides the comic relief. Job is definitely the most likeable character. Of course, the locations are beautifully filmed by director Max Porcelijn and cinematographer Coen Stroeve.

With Taj Atwal (Aamina & Zafira Jabara), Juliet Aubrey (Sister Joan Pauwels), Tim Dutton (Klaas Gilbert), Taheen Modak (Zaim Jabara), Paul Tylak (Talib Jabara), Eva Marie de Waal (Femke de Haan), Teun Kuilboer (Otto Nelissen), Mike Libanon (Cliff Palache), Martijn Nieuwerf (Lionel Veith), Martijn Oversteegen (Spike), Anniek Pheifer (Janneke Paulis) and Jeroen Spitzenberger (Isaak Graaff).

Produced by Keith Thompson. David Swetman and Louise Pedersen exec produce for All3Media International. Ronald Versteeg, Kaja Wolffers and Sabine Brian co-produce for NL Film.  Alexander Blaauw is the line producer. Ian Strachan is the head of production. Music composed by Matthijs Kieboom. Editing by Annelies van Woerden. Jaap Hoek is the art director. Production designed by Alfred Schaaf. Main title sequence designed by Planet X Title Design.

Production supported by the NL Film Incentive. Distributed by All3Media International, Van der Valk started this week in Germany on Das Erste as Kommissar Van der Valk. France 3 will show the series in France.

(1) A pseudonym of Dutch composer Jan Stoeckart (1927-2017).  

 

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2020/04/van-der-valk-series-1-episode-1-love-in_30.html  (Episode 1)   

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2020/06/van-der-valk-series-1-episode-3-death.html  (Episode 3) 

 

[Update - October 6, 2020]  Aired by pubcaster France 3 as Les enquêtes du commissaire Van der Valk, this contemporary adaptation of the character created by English author Nicolas Freeling is available here on DVD from this week thanks to L'Atelier d'images (https://www.latelierdimages.fr/produit/les-enquetes-du-commissaire-van-der-valk-saison-1/).

https://www.radiotimes.com/news/tv/2020-04-24/van-der-valk-itv-locations-amsterdam/
https://www.matthijskieboom.com/
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1436726/Nicolas-Freeling.html

AGATHA RAISIN - SERIES 3, EPISODE 2: AGATHA RAISIN & THE DEADLY DANCE (ACORN TV)

The third series (four 90-minute episodes) of British mystery comedy-drama Agatha Raisin premiered on U.S. streaming service Acorn TV between Autumn 2019 and Winter 2020. 

Ashley Jensen (Catastrophe, Ugly Betty) plays the title role, an ex-London PR queen turned private investigator. 

The Agatha Raisin Detective Agency is severely hit by bad publicity after an article in a local paper－including some unkind words from DCI Denzel Wilkes (Jason Barnett). But Sir Charles Fraith (Jason Merrells) has convinced a friend, the obnoxious Mrs Tiggy Leggat-Brown, to hire Agatha. Her daughter Cassandra has received death threats because of her engagement with Perry Peterson.

« Although I hope you're not the amateur busybody that the police say you are.»

The engagement party ends in the pool for Tiggy, Cassandra and Perry when Agatha Raisin saves them from a sniper but Tiggy Leggat-Brown accuses her of ruining the event. Toni Gilmour (Jodie Tyack) looks for a missing dog with DC Bill Wong (Matt McCooey), James Lacey (Jamie Glover) is disenchanted, a hitman eats a cake, Charles and Roy Silver (Mathew Horne) play dominoes and DCI Wilkes can dance tango.

Australian actor and dancer Adam Garcia guest stars as George Felliet, a tango teacher, in the fabulously funny Agatha Raisin & the Deadly Dance. This episode, adapted from the novel by M.C. Beaton, was penned by crime drama virtuoso and regular Agatha Raisin scriptwriter Chris Murray (Midsomer Murders and the recent Van der Valk). 

Also with Lucy Liemann (Sarah Bloxby), Patsy Kensit (Emma Comfrey), Anna Wilson-Jones (Tiggy Laggat-Brown), Abigail Carter-Simpson (Cassandra Laggat-Brown), Steve John Shepherd (Jeremy Laggatt-Brown), Angus Castle-Doughty (Perry Peterson), Elle McAlpine (Felicity Felliet), etc.

Produced by Free@Last TV and Company Pictures (an All3Media company). Co-produced by Acorn Media Enterprises (a division of RLJ Entertainment, Inc.). Barry Ryan and David A. Walton exec produce for Free@Last TV. Michele Buck exec produces for Company Pictures. Catherine Mackin exec produces for Acorn Media Enterprises. 

Produced by Guy Hescott. Co-produced by Ian Strachan. Music composed by Evan Jolly. Theme composed by Rupert Gregson-Williams. Cinematography by James Moss. Editing by James Hey. Titles by Light Creative. Distributed by All3Media International, except for English-speaking territories which are handled by Acorn Media International. Directed by Roberto Bangura.

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2020/04/agatha-raisin-series-3-episode-1-agatha.html (Series 3, Episode 1)

AMSTERDAM UNDERCOVER (DER AMSTERDAM-KRIMI) - EPISODES 1 & 2: TOD IN DER PRINZENGRACHT & AUFERSTANDEN VON DEN TOTEN (DAS ERSTE, 2018)

[Favourite of the Month] Starring Hannes Jaenicke, Der Amsterdam-Krimi was launched almost two years ago by German pubcaster Das Erste. It's one of the channel's feature-length crime dramas filmed abroad for its Donnerstags-Krimi line-up (like Der Zurich-Krimi or Kommissar Dupin).

Amsterdam Undercover (the international title of Der Amsterdam-Krimi) started with Tod in der Prinzengracht and Auferstanden von den Toten, two episodes shot between December 2017 and January 2018 and aired in November 2018.

Alex Pollack (Hannes Jaenicke), an undercover investigator for the LKA in Düsseldorf, wants to bring down a drug baron named Tom Fischer (Sascha Alexander Geršak). He handles the infiltration of his colleague and girlfriend Katja Wolf (Alice Dwyer), who became Fischer's right-hand person in Amsterdam under the alias Isabel Baumann. When Katja doesn't report to Alex for three months, he goes to the capital of the Netherlands without informing neither his superior, nor the Dutch authorities.

Pollack discovers that Katja/Isabel got dangerously close to the mobster. A confrontation with her at the Amsterdam Central Station ends up with Alex arrested by Dutch Commissioner  Bram de Groot (Fedja van Huêt) and his team. They put Tom Fischer and "Isabel Baumann" under surveillance as part of an investigation on a new dangerous designer drug. De Groot wants the man behind the whole operation: Frederik Koning (Raymond Thiry), a powerful investor with many connections. The commissioner joins forces with the German investigator, who must figure out whether Katja has gone much too far.

Loyalty is the theme of Tod in der Prinzengracht, the first part of a couple of captivating crime thrillers. Hannes Jaenicke is at his best amongst some excellent German and Dutch actors in the beautiful Amsterdam. In Auferstanden von den Toten, the death of a female student and the reappearance of a foreign worker provide Pollack and de Groot unexpected leads to Koning. This episode makes a great use of the locations, such as the fascinating Koepelgevangenis in Breda (a former prison).

Written by Peter Kohler. Based on a format by Rebecca Mahnkopf and Klaus Pieber. Directed by Michael Kreindl (Todes in der Prinzengracht) and  Peter Ladkani (Auferstanden von den Toten). Also with Sven Gerhardt (Thomas Breuer), Gijs Naber (Rijkaard), Birgit Welink (Renée), Peter Post (Rutger), Tanja Jess (Susanne Verbeek), Edon Rizvanolli (Driss), Omar El-Saeidi (Molo), Sigrid ten Napel (Hanna Meijer), etc. Produced by Ziegler Film Köln for ARD Degeto and Das Erste.

Marc O. Dreher exec produces. Produced by Barbara Thielen. Florian Nilson and Sandra Moll are the production managers for ARD Degeto. Production services by Ministry of film (Huub Meijer). Music by Andreas Helmle. Production designed by Alfred Schaaf. Cinematography by Anton Klima (Todes in der Prinzengracht) and Namche Okon (Auferstanden von den Toten). Editing by Nina Meister and Nathalie Pürzer. In June, Das Erste will show two new episodes of Der Amsterdam-Krimi (filmed during summer 2019): Tod im Hafenbecken and Das verschwundene Kind.

The same month, the channel will launch Van der Valk in Germany as Kommissar Van der Valk. The ITV detective drama is co-produced by ARD Degeto and filmed in Amsterdam too. Amsterdam Undercover is distributed by Beta Film.

https://www.daserste.de/unterhaltung/film/der-amsterdam-krimi/index.html
https://www.zieglerfilmkoeln.de/

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