Blauwasserleben (2015)

Heike and Stefan have been a couple for many years, and after a long wait they have made their shared dream come true. They are sailing around the world all alone on a catamaran. They are happy, and everything seems perfect when they arrive on the island of Nuku Hiva in the South Pacific and find a beautiful paradise that seems to fulfill their wish to live in harmony with nature completely. Their dream of unrestricted freedom finally seems to be coming true. But then their happiness comes to an abrupt end when Stefan does not return from an outing. The day before, the couple had met a local man named Arihano, and Stefan had gone into the jungle alone with him. After Arihano comes back alone, worried about Stefan, Heike agrees to go with the local man to look for him; Arihano claims he had to leave Stefan behind injured. Once they reach the jungle, Arihano suddenly threatens her with a weapon and tries to rape her. But Heike puts up a fierce fight and manages to escape. She asks the island police for help, but they are very slow to begin searching for Stefan. Jacques, the lead investigator, is the person Heike can communicate with most easily, but at first he doubts her story, especially since she cannot immediately remember the local man’s name. When she remembers it and is also able to show a photo of Stefan and Arihano together, Jacques has to believe her. Even so, concerns remain, because the young man is the son of a respected member of the village and the church. Jacques speaks with Arihano’s family, but the young man has disappeared. Any remaining doubts about Heike’s accusations against the local man are dispelled when, after days of searching, a burned skeleton is found in the jungle. Heike is devastated and returns to Germany to process the traumatic experience. Her mother and sister meet her at the airport, where they have to “fight” their way through the waiting reporters, who continue to hound her over the following days. Heike struggles to get back to everyday life and is plagued by nightmares and financial problems. To her dismay, she discovers that she has no control over their joint account because they were not married. The account was in Stefan’s name, and she had merely been added as an authorized signatory. Although the balance also consisted of her savings, Heike is now penniless. The boat, too, is registered in Stefan’s name and, as part of his estate, belongs only to his family. Her attempt to get her old job back in Hamburg fails, so Heike turns to a reporter who had offered to publish her story exclusively. In return, she receives a reasonable fee, which eases her financial burden a little. The reporter also accompanies Heike back to Nuku Hiva, where Arihano has finally been caught and she is expected to identify him. This is another very difficult time for Heike, because she not only has to face the murderer of the love of her life, but also has to return to the scene in the jungle so the events of the crime can be reconstructed. After Arihano gives contradictory accounts of how Stefan was murdered, claiming it was self-defense, investigator Jacques considers Arihano’s guilt proven. Arihano’s father is also convinced of his son’s guilt and asks Heike to forgive him for what his son did to her and Stefan. While still on the island, Heike begins writing down her story on the reporter’s advice, so she can put the past behind her.