The Hedgehog (2009)
"Le hérisson" (original title)

Paloma is a serious and highly articulate but deeply bored 11-year-old who has decided to kill herself on her 12th birthday. Fascinated by art and philosophy, she questions and documents ... See full summary »

Director:

Mona Achache

Writers:

Mona Achache (screenplay), Muriel Barbery (novel)

Stars:

Josiane Balasko, Garance Le Guillermic, Togo Igawa

9 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Josiane Balasko	...	Renée Michel
Garance Le Guillermic	...	Paloma Josse
Togo Igawa	...	Kakuro Ozu
Anne Brochet	...	Solange Josse
Ariane Ascaride	...	Manuela Lopez
Wladimir Yordanoff	...	Paul Josse
Sarah Lepicard	...	Colombe Josse (as Sarah Le Picard)
Jean-Luc Porraz	...	Jean-Pierre, le clochard
Gisèle Casadesus	...	Mme de Broglie
Mona Heftre	...	Mme Meurisse
Samuel Achache	...	Tibère
Valérie Karsenti	...	La mère de Tibère
Stéphan Wojtowicz	...	Le père de Tibère
Isabelle Sobelmann	...	Anna Arthens
Chantal Banlier	...	Maria Malavoin

Storyline

Paloma is a serious and highly articulate but deeply bored 11-year-old who has decided to kill herself on her 12th birthday. Fascinated by art and philosophy, she questions and documents her life and immediate circle, drawing trenchant and often hilarious observations on the world around her. But as her appointment with death approaches, Paloma finally meets some kindred spirits in her building's grumpy janitor and an enigmatic, elegant neighbor, both of whom inspire Paloma to question her rather pessimistic outlook on life.

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Plot Keywords:

janitor | neighbor | death | 12th birthday | 11 year old | 

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Taglines:

Let Life In.

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

NeoClassics Films [United States] Official site [Australia]

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French Japanese

Release Date:

3 July 2009 (France)

Also Known As:

El erizo

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films des Tournelles, Eagle Pictures, France 2 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Togo Igawa (Kakuro Ozu) learned his French lines in the movie phonetically. He does not speak French in real life.

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Quotes

Paloma Josse: Planning to die doesn't mean I let myself go like a rotten vegetable. What matters isn't the fact of dying or when you die. It's what you're doing at that precise moment.

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Connections

Features The Munekata Sisters (1950)

User Reviews

best kid character in a long time

The main character is a girl who feels trapped in her upper-class, politically important, generally high-strung family and deals with it by filming their every move with a video camera her governmental-minister father gives her, while whispering a merciless voice-over as the camera records. It's great to see a movie about people's secret lives bringing them together, the endless creativity that follows from watching what actually happens, and completely improbable friendships mattering more than anything else. None of the characters ever really leave their various apartments in a big building in a wealthy part of Paris, but quite a lot of ordinary and very entertaining things happen. The film is about people adopting each other across social barriers--but that doesn't quite capture it either. This is the French version of feel-good, which means it stays intellectual while being the opposite of cynical about whether people can connect with each other. I really liked it.