A young girl whose mother has set impossibly high standards for finds an egg in the woods and decide to raise it as her own. What hatches from the egg is something otherworldly and a bit shocking. As she bonds with this being, her life takes many unexpected turns.
Written by Ilja Rautsi and directed by Hanna Bergholm, Hatching is the first fiction feature film for both and yet shows great grasp of what it takes to make a truly interesting and well-crafted film. The story here is downright bizarre and yet, it makes sense within its own universe. The film shows a family unit composed of a tightly-wound mother, a seemingly absent-minded/possibly eternal teen father, a talent young girl, and a most annoying young boy. Other characters come and gone, but these core four are where most of the story takes place. As tensions rise between mother and daughter along with some secrets being discovered, the story can only lead to the daughter looking for an outlet for her needs which she finds in this egg and its hatchling.
The film is really carried by lead actress Siiri Solalinna as Tinja the young girl who finds the egg, nurtures it, and tries to make sense of live with it and without it. Her performance here is simply amazing. She’s on point and beyond, she shows maturity in how her emotions are shown and also an understanding of when a child should just go wild. Her work here grabs the viewer and keeps them invested throughout the film. She’s the center of everything and her work here is just perfect for the bizarro world of the film. The film is very much all about her and her situation, so she’s the lead and the main point of interest for sure. Playing her mom who seems to be all about how she looks to others is Sophia Heikkilä whose character is listed simply as Mother. Her work makes the character one that is quite dislikable. She does this with ease and makes the character a strong one. The rest of the cast gets a lot less screentime, but also help the film establish its emotions, its weirdness, its connection with the audience.
Hatching is a film with a very specific look, clearly ultra-designed, ultra-controlled, which makes sense in the settings here. The art direction by Juris Zhukovskis, the production design by Päivi Kettunen teamed with the set decoration by a fantastic crew, and the costumer design by Ulrika Sjölin create a unique world that would not make much sense outside of this film. The universe here is very specific, colorful, and just amazing to look at. Needing their own props here is the special effects department as the egg, what comes from it, and its evolution are so absolutely great, they make the viewer want to see more of their work.
Hatching is a mesmerizing tale of a child needing more from her mother and finding it in her own way with an egg she finds and nurtures to life. The film feels like a dark fairytale made perfectly for today’s audiences, particularly those who have a love for the unusual, the bizarre, and story that would not make sense outside of their own universe. Hatching is strong film with fascinating aspects to its story, fantastic performances, and something in there to weird out just about every single viewer. It’s done with talent and mastery of the filmmaking process from first time fiction feature filmmaker and writer.