Beresina, or the Last Days of Switzerland

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Beresina, or the Last Days of Switzerland
Directed by	Daniel Schmid
Produced by	Marcel Hoehn
Written by	Martin Suter
Starring	Yelena Panova Geraldine Chaplin Martin Benrath Ulrich Noethen Ivan Desny
Release date(s)	1999
Running time	108 min.
Country	Switzerland Germany Austria
Language	German (Swiss German)
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Beresina, or the Last Days of Switzerland (German: Beresina oder Die letzten Tage der Schweiz) is a 1999 satiric comedy film by Swiss director Daniel Schmid. It chronicles the story of Irina, a Russian call girl arriving in Switzerland, whose innocent attempt to live the high life there triggers unintended coup d'etat in the country. The title Beresina stands for Berezina River, the fictional codename of Swiss patriotic operation in the film.

All aspects of Swiss life are satirized in anecdotes of this funny black comedy. The heroine deals with a retired P-26 officer who appears as her false "sponsor" and various sexual perverts at the top of Swiss social hierarchy. Their attitudes to immigrants are also depicted ironically. Even the national identity and modern history of Switzerland are caricaturized in the country's first ever coup d'etat sequences. The film is eventually raised to the level of an art form at Irina's coronation as Queen of Switzerland.

Beresina was selected for "Un Certain Regard" section at 1999 Cannes International Film Festival.