Late Shift is a new Swiss medical drama, written and directed by Petra Volpe. It premiered at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival in February and was released in the UK on 1 August. 

The original German title is Helding, which literally translates as Heroine, and that is how the principal character, Floria (Leonie Benesch) is presented to us. From the very beginning, Floria works at a frantic pace, caring for 25 patients on a mixed surgical ward with just one other nurse and one trainee to assist.

This is not a film about plot. Yes, a lot happens and yes, it is very dramatic in places, but this is a slice-of-life film about carrying out an essential role in a chronically understaffed hospital. The life and death dramas are going on all around Floria, and she has to cope with the needs of her patients and their relatives as best she can. However, the difference between this story and traditional hospital dramas is that the camera follows Floria as she does her job, rather than focussing on these individual patient dramas.

There was plenty of light and shade, and whilst the pace was generally frenetic, there were moments of stillness (one particular moment where Floria sings a lullaby to calm an older patient with dementia sticks in the mind), moments of comedy and moments of tragedy.

It was only during the closing montage of her patients settling down for the night that I had time to reflect on what I had just seen. At no other point did I consider that I was watching a film and that Leonie Benesch was an actress playing a role. My disbelief was well and truly suspended – Floria was real – her patients were real – and she truly was a heroine.

If I have one criticism of the film, it is that too many loose ends were tied up at the end, which I felt was unnecessary. The nature of the job is that the loose ends remain loose ends and will still be there when her next shift commences the following afternoon. Having said that, the final shot on the tram was a near perfect ending!

This is the third time in three years that I have seen and been impressed by Leonie Benesch – first in The Teacher’s Lounge in 2023 and second in September 5^th last year. She was also in Michael Haneke’s wonderful The White Ribbon back in 2009, at the tender age of just 18.

Late Shift is very sad, but ultimately important and, I felt, very rewarding. Go see it!