Lola Wegenstein (Valerie Pachner) is a high-flying businesswoman who is always after that next big deal, much respected by her colleagues for her capability, and maybe somewhat intimidating as well, for she exudes an air of steely confidence. She is also sleeping with her boss, Elise (Mavie Horbiger), who finds her no-nonsense approach a real turn-on, and could be lining Lola up for an important promotion that would see her set for life, or a very long time anyway, in a very prestigious position. But Lola has a secret she is keeping from them all, it is none of their business but as she received a phone call at the airport events begin to close in: it's her sister Conny (Pia Hierzegger).
The secret is that there is a history of mental illness in Lola's family, and Conny is severely affected by this affliction. Not only that, but she has been taken to a psychiatric hospital after a suicide attempt with a medication overdose, and Lola has to see to it that she is at least coping and getting the right treatment, which is an issue when Conny complains loudly and bitterly whenever she sees her that she is being held there against her will. The older woman, whose legal guardian her younger sister has had to be, even phones her up at all hours to make wild claims about being victimised at the hospital and how Lola just has to set her free. Or at least that's how it appears.
The twist is, and this is an early development in the plot, that Conny does not have access to a phone on the ward, not least a mobile one, so Lola is imagining these stressful calls, for she is feeling so much pressure that she is exhibiting psychosis as well. Basically, this is the last thing she needs to happen as the biggest business deal of her life is looming at work, and when Elise discovers her girlfriend's problems she begins to dial back her responsibilities in the office, recognising she needs to ease off, yet also that she does not want the deal sabotaged by Lola's mental illness. So there was a lot going on here, from the stigma of psychological instability to the demands of the modern working world, though it boiled down to a common feeling in the twenty-first century: it's all about to fall to pieces around your ears.
No matter what you're doing, what you are trying to juggle in your personal or working life, the barely acknowledged terror that it is all on the brink of going horribly wrong was what fuelled the drama here. Director and writer Marie Kreutzer had mental illness in her family, and used that to make it convincing as a portrayal in her film, but one aspect you could tell came from experience was how terribly embarrassing it was, and how that can lead to poor reactions from those around the afflicted. Lola is ashamed in a way of Conny, we can see that by her reluctance to discuss her with anyone unless absolutely forced to by circumstances, but she feels guilty about this too. The world of international business has no place for this kind of weakness, but the impression is the world outside of that is reluctant to accept it as well, and by the time you have to confront it, it may be too late for many. Very well acted, especially by the frosty Pachner, there was a lot going on with sexual harassment and poverty shaming thrown into the mix, but the takeaway was that you simply don't know what kind of day the other person is having. Music by Kyrre Kvam.
