Title: Late Shift
Foreign Title: Heldin
Year: 2025
Country: Switzerland/Germany
Language: In German with English subtitles
Director and Writer : Petra Biondina Volpe
Straightforward, simple, yet compelling, Late Shift is an excellent example of social realism done right.
The film follows Floria, a nurse working a single night shift in a surgical ward. It’s an ordinary hospital: clean, well-equipped, efficient — the best that Western medicine can offer. But it is also understaffed, the patients are demanding, and the doctors occasionally arrogant. Nothing unusual — and that’s precisely the point. The film’s quiet power comes from its depiction of the mundane. The constant tension, the fear of forgetting a task, mixing medications, or breaking a promise — these small anxieties accumulate as the hours pass. The stress builds, yet Floria remains composed and compassionate. Through her, we learn patience; we begin to understand the roots of irritation and neglect. At times, we even feel a pang of guilt, recalling moments when we ourselves were insensitive toward those who care for us.
Leonie Benesch delivers an exceptional performance. After her remarkable turn in The Teacher’s Lounge (2023), she again demonstrates her ability to embody calmness and restraint while radiating deep human warmth. Amid the chaos, Benesch reminds us that at the center of every hospital there is a person who genuinely cares.
The cinematography mirrors Floria’s rhythm — precise and fluid, following her through corridor conversations, ringing phones, stressed patients, and exhausted colleagues. Neither she nor the camera ever stops moving.
By the end of the shift, not everything is resolved. Some damage is done; some lives remain frayed. Yet the message is unmistakable: we need more caregivers, and we must treat them better.
Although the final attempt to tie all storylines together feels unnecessary, Late Shift remains a compelling and compassionate look at the people who hold the healthcare system together, one shift at a time. There is no relief at the end, just a short break, knowing tomorrow will bring another shift just like this one, with a nurse just a touch more worn out. It is a deeply humane and rewarding film.
