26 January 2022

Élie Wajeman's Médecin de nuit | Night Doctor (2021)

Vincent Macaigne was over forty when he had to lose 25 kilos and pass his driving test before he could take the lead role as night doctor Mickaël is this film, which he describes as a kind of homage to the New Hollywood films of the 1970s.

Mickaël's partner is Sacha (Sarah Le Picard) and they have two children in Paris, although he is also having an affair with Sofia (Sara Giraudeau), the 'fiancé' of his cousin Dimitri (Pio Marmaï), who's a pharmacist. And Dimitri relies on Mickaël to keep the pharmacy in good financial order, because Mickaël deals in the rather shady business of supplying Subutex to the many drug addicts who flock around increasingly as word gets around. But Mickaël had integrity, and in spite of his knowledge that much of this stuff ends up on the black market at hugely inflated prices, he won't in any way prescribe Fentanyl: he knows how many deaths the drug has caused, and won't listen to Dimitri or any of the addicts who ask for it.

Add to his problems he's being threatened by the medical establishment with an investigation and he wants out, he wants to get away from the addicts, maybe escape with Sofia? She'd be willing, although she knows he won't do it: he's too attached to Sacha and his family in general. As the addicts become more demanding the violence escalates, and much of it is coming from Mickaël's side: and as Dimitri increases the pressure for him to prescribe Fentanyl and tells lies about his situation, how much Mickaël and his family's life are in danger if he doesn't step up the prescriptions, Mickaël realises that he now has to carry a gun in the car.

And although Mickaël only uses the gun once as a threat, it's already too late and the doctor is the one who needs an ambulance, but it looks as if that will come too late as well.

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