This series is no longer available on MHz Choice

This series is no longer available on MHz Choice

He’s the dutch uncle you’d love to have – experienced, concerned, insightful. Sven Wollter plays retired police detective Van Veeteren in the series based on the bestselling novels by Håkan Nesser. Set in the fictional city of Maardam, a scandi anytown with names that even sound Dutch, the series explores themes we’ve come to expect from the Swedes – dysfunctional families, religious fanaticism, child abuse, suicide. But it doesn’t have the edgy feel that some of the Scandinavian Noir titles do. It’s got a measured, thoughtful pace and musical scoring that make the crimes seem like beautiful tragedies.

As the series begins, Van Veeteren plans his new life as a used bookstore owner and is about to pick up his son from prison release. He’s saying goodbye to young colleagues Münster (Thomas Hanzon) and Moreno (Eva Rexed), newly positioned to move up the ranks as lead investigators. They last about two seconds without him, of course, and in the subsequent days make a beeline to his bookstore to pick his brain about difficult cases. Over a bottle of dark ale, they get his perspective on investigating, human nature and their own lives. It’s more than talk, however – we end up seeing him in action through flashbacks and the times when he’s asked for or pushes himself into cases.

What makes Van Veeteren so watchable is the humanity of the central character. He’s generous and big-hearted, with blind spots as big as his best qualities. He’s relentless when working a case, he doesn’t always know when he’s pushed someone too hard, and his father’s heart has trouble letting his son go. Similar to Wallander, the Van Veeteren episodes are about more than individual cases – they’re about the art of police work and the heartbreak of fatherhood. He is perhaps the most likable of our Scandinavian crime protagonists.  Van Veeteren was one of the very first MHz DVD releases almost a decade ago, and we’re delighted to be able to add this much-loved show to the ever-growing MHz Choice library.


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