Dramatic TV series - Racism is harmful: "Night shift at Cash & Carry"
In the heart of Hamburg, an unexpected incident disrupts the night. A purported heavy transport has policeman Harry Tönnies (Benno Fürmann) suspicious. This suspicion turns out to be his undoing as he's gunned down in front of his frightened partner, Milla Bongers (Friederike Becht). "Nachtschicht," Lars Becker's gritty crime series, offers this gripping episode titled "Cash & Carry" on ZDFneo on Tuesday at 8:15 pm.
Quickly, Erichsen (Armin Rohde), Elias Zekarias (Tedros Teclebrhan), and Lisa Brenner (Barbara Auer) identify the culprits using witness statements. The duo of criminals, Balou Dieudonné (Klismann Lefaza Jovete) and Norman Melchior (Pit Bukowski), had intentionally obstructed the road to remove a cash machine through the kiosk frontage using a mini-excavator. However, both are shielded by fabricated alibis from their respective families.
Bongers has a hidden agenda, as Harry wasn't only her mentor. Her connection with Harry's ex-wife, Astrid Kühne (Nadeshda Brennicke), pushes her to tangle with the accused. The dynamics between Bongers and Zekarias intensify when Roland Orbach (Maximilian Brückner) gets into a scuffle with Zekarias, displaying derogatory words towards minorities and women.
Author and director Lars Becker ("Rich or Dead," "The Good Cop") tackles the challenging subject of racism, both in society and within the police force.
Despite a lack of comedic elements, the narration remains captivating. Erichsen and Brenner engage in a disagreement about their relationship history: "I would have separated from you after five minutes," claims Brenner.
The cinematography may occasionally veer towards crude, and the word "asshole" pops up unnecessarily often. Nevertheless, the dialogues and performances by actors like Armin Rohde ("Schnitzel De Luxe"), Friederike Becht ("A Disastrous Plan"), and Nadeshda Brennicke ("In-Laws in the Bush") leave a lasting impact.
The two female detectives fight for respect in their careers and harbor personal vengeance motives – going as far as self-righteousness. Although the perpetrators are caught early on, the conclusion of this case unravels with unpredictable consequences until the end.
