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Philippe Le Guay's psychological thriller centres around the complex subject of bullying in the workplace. Pierre (Gérald Laroche), a hardworking, honest and likeable family man, switches over to the night shift at the local bottle-making factory. From the outset, his new work mate Fred (Marc Barbe) clearly dislikes Pierre. This animosity first emerges as a practical joke, but swiftly escalates until Fred becomes engaged in an all-out effort to destroy his colleague's happiness.
Night Shift succeeds initially by making the audience feel as if we're being bullied alongside Laroche, but director Le Guay loses the thread as he attempts to accelerate the plot. Consequently it becomes more and more difficult to sympathise with Pierre as the movie progresses, his pathetic weakness becoming infuriating as he interacts with equally unappealing characters.
And, to top it off, there's a cop-out ending. Sitting uneasily with the rest of the movie, it fatally undermines the good work done in the powerful first act.
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