Hatching – Movie Review
Director: Hanna Bergholm
Writer: Ilja Rautsi (Screenplay)
Writer: Hanna Bergholm (Story)
Cast
- Siiri Solalinna
- Sophia Heikkila
- Jani Volanen
- Reino Nordin
- Oiva Ollila
Plot: A young gymnast, who tries desperately to please her demanding mother, discovers a strange egg. She hides it and keeps it warm, but when it hatches, what emerges shocks them all.
Runtime: 1 Hour 26 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Hatching starts as young gymnast Tinja (Solalinna) is facing increasing pressure to perform from her Mother (Heikkila). After seeing her mother kill a bird in their home, Tinja discovers an egg in the woodland area surrounding their home. She decides to keep the egg, only to see it grow to a massive size.
When the egg finally hatches, Tinja is left to care for what was inside. As she learns the dangers that have been created from the unknown.
Verdict on Hatching
Characters
Tinja is a young gymnast who has been getting pushed to her limits and has not reached the perfection level her mother expects. She is a lonely girl that doesn’t get to socialise with the other gymnast. Tinja does seem to lack other social skills in her life, as we see how she reacts to the bird in the home. She decides to help hatch the egg left behind and finds herself caring for something she never imagined.
Tinja’s mother is a social media blogger, using her family life to try and capture perfection. This is seen in how she expects Tinja to enter and win competitions. She pushes Tinja past her limits and seems to have the whole world revolving around her.
Tinja’s Father and little brother Matias are in her life, with her Father supportive, from a distance and Matias being the annoying little brother.
Performances
There is only one true star in this movie and that is young actress Siiri Solalinna. She is incredible in the movie, showing the vulnerable state her character was in. We see the striking loneliness coming through, as well as the desperation to achieve success. Sophia Heikkila makes us hate her mother’s character very easily. You can see her selfish side of her and only caring about herself.
Story
The story follows a young gymnast who decides to hatch an egg she finds in the forest after its mother is killed. It soon grows to a massive side, leaving the young girl shocked at what comes out of the egg.
This story is a strange one, as it plays heavily into the pressure a younger sports star can find themselves under. Creating an isolated and lonely environment for a growing child. This pressure seems to create everything else that happens, causing a ripple effect in her life and fighting any of the problems she is facing.
In truth, you could read a lot into this, being part of a breaking family. Ignoring the truth to try and move on with your own life and wanting to create a better version of yourself.
Themes
Hatching is a fantasy horror that follows a young girl hatching an egg and becoming shocked at what she finds inside. The movie gets pushed into horror comedy with certain interactions between Tinja and the creature. With this almost feels like E.T.’s relationship between the two. However, it does go into more horror with the connection. When it comes to the special effects, this is the highlight of the film, as they look amazing.
Final Thoughts – Hatching is an odd movie, filled with laughs, shocks and great creature creation.
