HATCHING is a new horror movie from Finland (org. title Pahanhautoja). It’s being released by IFC which is always an indication that the quality level is quite high. The visuals in this movie are gorgeous and offer both a classic creature feature and body horror elements.
Basically, it doesn’t matter much that this horror movie is in Finnish because the dialogue isn’t the most important thing. You could almost (almost!) watch this movie without subtitles or dubbing and still understand most of it. Having said that, the dialogue does offer some brutal nuances that you’d miss, so it’s not exactly irrelevant to get the full story.
The runtime of Hatching is just shy of 90 minutes (1 hour and 26 minutes, to be exact) and that means it’s a short and brutal story. As it seems to be the case with Nordic productions right now, animals are (yet again) being hurt to further the story. It’s not nearly as bad as it is in the upcoming The Innocents since we see the results of animal abuse more than the actual abuse.
Well, in most cases anyway.
In any case, the plot of Hatching is more about humans. Hurting and killing animals is just one way to show “human nature” and in this movie, it makes more sense than in most. Still, I could easily do without it.
For most of the runtime, Hatching is about a young girl and her place in the world – or simply her own family. According to the director, Hatching is a story about “lovelessness that creates a monster” which makes perfect sense to me. Hopefully, you’ll feel the same way when you’ve watched this movie.
I don’t want to do spoilers here, but if you like a good creature feature or body horror plot (and aren’t too squeamish about blood and vomit), then you should definitely enjoy this one.
Watch Hatching in theaters or on-demandHanna Bergholm is the director of Hatching and this is her feature film debut as a writer and director. She previously directed several short films since 2005. She even wrote and directed a TV series based on one of her short films (a kids’ show).
The screenplay was written by Ilja Rautsi who has written some short films with the most amazing titles. These include Spandex sapiens (2015), Helsinki Mansplaining Massacre (2018), and Night of the Living Dicks (2021). Her 2018 short film even won her awards at both the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival and San Sebastian Horror and Fantasy Film Festival.
Hatching is described [by the director] as a genre film that can be watched by both fans of these darker stories and those afraid to watch horror films. I’m not sure the people I know, who can’t watch horror, would be able to stomach the more graphic parts of this one. Other than that, I can easily see her point.
Hatching is out in theaters from April 29, 2022, and on-demand on May 17, 2022 via IFC.
