Ah, I really don’t know who is responsible for the series titles at ZDF. I have already pointed out the sometimes very lurid or flat additional titles in series in a few places. Now comes “The Bayonne Beast”, a French mini-series from 2021, which will celebrate its free TV premiere in Germany from August 7, 2022. In the original it is called “La promesse”, “The promise”. It would have done that for me too, without the lurid touch. Anyway: description, trailer and pictures leave an impression, so that the 6 episodes are definitely first on my watch list. From Sunday, August 7, 2022, from 10:15 p.m., ZDF will be showing the series in double episodes, and the episodes can also be seen in the ZDF media library for a month.
The Beast of Bayonne – that’s what the French mini-series on ZDF is all regarding
In the small French town of Bayonne, little Charlotte disappears without a trace during a storm of the century. Police officer Pierre Castaing, who is in charge of the investigation, has to release his main suspect, Serge Fouquet, for lack of evidence. Instead, the young rebel Tony Andreï comes under suspicion. For Castaing, however, it is clear that Fouquet is the kidnapper. His obsession with convicting him puts his life and that of his wife and their two daughters, Sarah and Lilas, to the test.
Years later, Sarah Castaing, who now works as a police officer in Bordeaux herself, is confronted with the disappearance of a girl. Eleven-year-old Jade Munoz climbed into a white van. Since then there has been no trace of her. There seem to be parallels to the case of Charlotte Meyer, who disappeared years ago, and Sarah also suspects Fouquet, with whom she connects a dark history in Bayonne.
Some crimes destroy lives, some destroy families, and some crimes can drag down entire cities. The six-part crime drama “The Bayonne Beast” bears witness to such a crime, which is still taking its toll on those affected decades later, describes the starting position Raphael Heucher from the main editorial office for international fiction at ZDF. “The Beast of Bayonne” accompanies the investigations, which extend over two time levels. The series creators change over the decades and have one or two surprises in store for us viewers. Actor Olivier Marchal, who should be well known to ZDF viewers as an investigator from the ZDF co-production “The Purpurnen Fluss” (The Purpurnen Rivers), is fighting on the front line for the police to find out the truth.
Images: TF1 / ZDF
