Good evening, House of Madness hatchlings:
Too often we put so much effort into trying to please others, that we forget about the most important person in life - ourselves. Being ashamed to attend your friend's birthday party, because the looks you anticipate receiving from those you haven't seen in some time deprive you of happy memories you should be creating, instead of being insecure enough to believe you're the central focus of everyone in attendance. Working for free on a weekend to impress your boss, when you already know damn well he or she doesn't appreciate any of your extra efforts can leave you feel worthless and unappreciated, especially when the next big job promotion goes to Chet instead of you, and he's only been there three months. Fuck you, Chet. Hosting your buddies at your palatial cottage in the summer and serving them $35 steaks you cooked as they spill worm dirt all over your houseboat, and end up eating your barbecued brilliance with their bare fucking hands. The audacity! Nothing feels worse than feeling underappreciated, undervalued, and constantly under the microscope; especially when the eye looking down the magnifying lens belongs to a loved one you so desperately want to impress. "Hatching" definitely doesn't pull any punches when it comes to taking back your dignity, and expressing "enough is enough".
Tinja (Siiri Solalinna) spends all of her free time striving to be a gymnast, intent on making the competitive team so she can participate in this year's big competition. We quickly realize that Tinja's aspirations of gymnastic dominance don't come from deep within her soul, but rather her mother's (Sophia Heikkila) dreams of Tinja's rise to stardom, as her own were thwarted years ago when an injury forced her out of dancing. Not only is Tinja's mother overbearing and borderline militant on her gym routines, but Mother is also a social media influencer that paints a picture of the world's perfect family as she uploads staged pictures and videos of herself, Tinja, her son Matias (Oiva Ollila) whom she doesn't give two shits about, and her husband (Jani Volanen) who she cares about even less. One day as the family is staging yet another bullshit video, a bird flies into the house, and once Tinja bravely catches it with a blanket, Mother asks to see the winged intruder, and nonchalantly breaks its neck before telling Tinja to throw it in the trash. Ahh, the trash; the place where unwanted parasites, useless scraps, and purposeless belongings are to be disposed of, never to be bothered with again, yes? If you're of no need to Mother, this is the fate and treatment she bestows on you, and Mother always gets what she wants.
Later that night, Tinja hears some wailing and crying from an animal in the woods, and after investigating, realizes it's the bird Mother deemed 'trash' earlier in the day. Tinja grabs a rock, and puts the suffering creature out of its misery before noticing that the bird was trying to get back to its nest containing an egg. Tinja brings the egg back home, and doles out the job of 'incubator' to her favourite teddy bear. Before long, the egg is much larger than a simple crow's egg, and as Tinja is hugging it to console herself after another one of Mother's tongue lashings, it begins to hatch. What exits the large shell is nothing short of a hideous monstrosity, and it quickly escapes by smashing through Tinja's bedroom window. It doesn't take long however, for the newest addition Tinja names Alli to return back home to where she was hatched; afterall, teenaged mothers willing to regurgitate birdseed for you without complaining are so hard to find, ya know?
Mother not only specializes in being a tyrant, but she's a little bit of an entitled twat to go along with her other redeeming qualities, and she isn't shy about making that perfectly clear as she announces her affair and new love interest Tero (Reino Nordin) to the rest of her family, while they're expected to be happy for her newfound love, and support whatever decisions make Mother happy. Tinja is forced to deal with everything that's thrown her way alone, because her little brother is rightfully envious of the child that steals all of Mother's affection, and Father is a spineless pile of chickenshit taking up real estate on the couch his wife gets plowed on when he's not home. As the tension mounts, and the stressors overflow, Tinja's little hatchling isn't just developing into what looks to be human, but also takes severe exception to anything and anyone who dares mistreat Tinja. Is Alli simply a manifestation of Tinja's mind brought on by years of selfish parenting, or is she in fact a very real being with an agenda of her own? Either way, Tinja isn't just yesterday's news waiting to be thrown in the trash, that shit is for the birds..........
Madness Meter: 6.4/10
NB
