The Hedgehog
Rating: 6/10
Cast: Josiane Balasko, Togo Igawa, Garance Le Guillermic
Director: Mona Achache
The Hedgehog aka Le herisson is a French film about a Parisian family living in an apartment block.
11 year old Paloma (Le Guillermic) is a deadly serious child - brought up within a rich family, she's desperate to prevent her life turning into a stuffy rich person. So she decides to kill herself when she's 12 - and spends the intervening time with a hand held camera taping everything around her.
Renee (Balasko) is the concierge of the building; a quiet, unnoticeable woman who performs her chores without complaining and never steps out of line.
However, under that façade lies the truth about Renee- and when both Paloma and Renee meet new neighbour Mr Ozu (Igawa) their lives are changed forever.
The Hedgehog is a sentimental story, which has, according to the director, a kind of fairy tale theme. Paloma is fiercely intelligent and seems at odds with the rest of the world around her. During Paloma's filming, she captures the mundanity of life around her and wonderfully articulates why she wants out. There's a good solid performance from both the actors who play Paloma and Renee and you do get engaged in the story.
It's a story which rewards investment in the characters - and certainly the last 10 minutes packs an emotional punch.
There's also some wonderful animation which appears onscreen from time to time and adds a lot to overall feel of the film - it's not quirky or irritating; it simply allows a bit more depth into this story about friendship.
The Hedgehog is an odd curio of a film - you may actually find yourself more moved than you anticipated as it nears its end.
