La caccia al tesoro

Another very dark Montalbano, reminding every viewer of the hideous things a police inspector has to confront. It's all part of the job, but it must take a terrible psychological toll.

It does have its touches of humour, a small lampoon of fanatical religious excess, and misunderstandings of almost a 'French bedroom farce' quality. It even has Catarella trying to show that he understands 'American'. However, deep down we know that there is something very sinister going on, and that there may be horrors yet in store for us.

For once, Mimì Augello is the one who comes up with a little bit of inspiration towards solving the plot. But then, Mimì never can forget the face of a beautiful woman!

8/10.

Love detective mystery dramas, particularly those from the UK and US ('Inspector Morse', 'A Touch of Frost', 'Foyle's War', 'Inspector George Gently', 'Midsomer Murders', 'Law and Order', 'Criminal Minds', 'Monk' and 'Murder She Wrote' for examples, and non-English/American ones (i.e. The Swedish 'Wallander' and the Danish 'The Killing') also fascinate me.

'Inspector Montalbano' is one of the best and most entertaining examples. It is not easy breathing freshness into a well-worn genre but 'Inspector Montalbano' manages to do so with aplomb. Watching 'Inspector Montalbano' is like eating a delicious Italian meal that immensely satisfies and leaves you wanting more. There may be very familiar tropes, but in a way it's inevitable and doesn't detract from the enjoyment at all.

"Treasure Hunt" continues the high quality of 'Inspector Montalbano' without being one of the greatest episodes. Let down only by the slight obviousness, by 'Inspector Montalbano' standards, of the culprit.

One always expects 'Inspector Montalbano' to look good. As always with 'Inspector Montalbano', "Treasure Hunt" is beautifully shot and the scenery is stunning, making those who've never been to Italy want to book a holiday there as soon as possible and is a treat for anybody who loves all things Italian. The scenery as always is atmospheric and the use of it very clever. The music is never over-bearing or low-key with a nice atmosphere and flavour, a lot of it is very cleverly used. The sound effects are remarkably authentic.

As ever, there is a very good mix of humour, tension and poignant human drama, with a story that's continually absorbing, tightly plotted, complicated without being incoherent and never illogical.

Characters may be stereotypes but well-written ones, especially one of the most fascinating foreign detective mystery dramas titular characters there is to me.

Acting is terrific, especially from Luca Zingaretti who is a treasure in the title role, having a perfect balance of comedy and drama and playing it straight while always engaging with his material.

In summation, great episode if not quite one of my favourites. 9/10 Bethany Cox