Hungarian Director György Pálfi Returns with His New Film: HEN
zita kisgergely
The latest feature from the acclaimed director, known for his boundary-pushing storytelling, has recently been released in the U.K. But the film’s leading lady may surprise you.
Yes, the character at the centre of the film HEN is a chicken–but don’t let that mislead you. Although it’s a quirky adventure story about a hen on the run from an industrial poultry farm and the scrapes she gets into with various animals (including humans), it morphs into something altogether more profound. Premiering in the Platform Competition at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival, the film is a rich allegory about morality, freedom, and how humans treat one another.
During filming, the feature’s main character was played by eight identical hens, each of which had a special talent–as was revealed in a recent interview with the director in The Guardian. One could run well, the other did a great job of pecking, while another was super good at staying completely still. All of them were taken care of by a special animal trainer for the duration of filming.
Following the main character as she navigates highways, cities, farms and finally, a rundown seaside restaurant entangled in criminal activity, allows the audience to experience the film from a truly unique perspective. As a result, the parallels between the treatment of animals and the exploitation of vulnerable people–including migrants caught in trafficking networks–becomes evident.
One of the film's strengths is its ability to balance humour with these darker themes. The screenplay, co-written by Pálfi and Zsófia Ruttkay, deftly manoeuvres between the more light-hearted misadventures of the hen's scrapes and a sharp social critique. Ideas concerning greed, mortality and survival lie just beneath the surface of the comedy.
HEN is a continuation of Pálfi’s unconventional approach to cinematic storytelling. He’s known for his wildly original previous features such as Hukkle, Taxidermia, and Final Cut: Ladies and Gentlemen. Similarly, this film is distinctly his own and can’t really be compared to other animal-centred features. HEN doesn’t rely on sentimentality or anthropomorphism to garner emotional attachment to his main character. Our hen remains a genuine hen throughout the film, lending perhaps more pathos to her confusion, determination and repeated escape attempts.
The result is a film that feels both grounded in realism yet rich with symbolic meaning.
HEN is currently in cinemas across the UK and Ireland and playing in select art-house theatres across Europe.
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