People will always surprise you.We spend so much time judging people by their covers there's no time left to discover who they really are.
This is at the heart of The Hedgehog , one of the most captivating films of the year.
A sign of a good foreign film is when you stop noticing the subtitles. Now, I didn't suddenly gain an intimate understanding of French halfway through the film but I was drawn into the story.
Renee (Josiane Balasko) is a widowed, 54-year-old janitor for a swanky apartment building. She's grumpy and generally unappealing.
That is, until someone takes the time to look inside.
Almost against her will Renee is befriended by 11-year-old Paloma, an intelligent girl who has decided she's ending her life on her 12th birthday, and a kindly Japanese widower Kakuru (Togo Igawa).
Paloma sums her up best when she says Renee is like a Hedgehog. Prickly and protective on the outside but an elegant creature on the inside. It's just that nobody took the time to look.
The worst thing is that Renee believes she deserves nothing more than her lonely life with her cat and her books and to be ignored by everyone else.
This hits home when she is finally coaxed out by Kakuru for dinner and passes one of the ladies who resides in the building. The lady greets her because she is elegantly dressed and doesn't recognise her as the janitor.
''She didn't recognise me'', Renee exclaims. ''That's because she's never seen you before'' is Kakuru's wise reply.
This film, which doesn't really have a storyline, is pure magic. The performances from the three main actors are perfect and they needed to be to keep you investing in them.
It's heartwarming, heartbreaking and funny and teaches us that everybody has value regardless of their station in life.
I'm really glad I decided to see this film, one of the best of the year. A 9 out of 10.
No comments:
Post a Comment