REVIEW / FILM OPINION – For her first production “The Hennedricks Family”, actress Laurence Arné takes a tender look at childhood dreams confronted with the difficulties and joys of blended families. With Laurence Arné and Dany Boon.
How to find your place within a blended family?
Like her character Justine in the first scene of The Hennedricks family, actress Laurence Arné bravely takes the plunge by directing her first film. During a preview in Bordeaux, she said “wanting to pay tribute to his childhood and to all the parents who put energy into maintaining a bond with their children“. THE “joyful family recompositions, inspired by his experience”as well as the resulting mental burden on women, are at the very heart of his comedy.
And family is indeed a question in The Hennedricks family, since the director’s sister is co-producer of the feature film. And Ludo, the heroine’s new companion, is played by Dany Boon, with whom she forms a real blended family. Laurence Arnéensured that the project is based on her script and her name, and not only on that of the actor.” She did not at first glance offer to Dany Boon this unusual role for him.
We therefore discover Dany Boon as a divorced musician father, who has sole custody of Joseph (Jehan Renard). A clumsy and rather cool father, whose other strengths we will obviously discover throughout the film. The director enthusiastically draws the viewer into Justine’s energy and good will. With her strong capital of sympathy, Laurence Arné undeniably brings to her film a tempo and a generosity who resemble him.
Music soothes the soul
Justine and Ludo have decided to go green and are renovating an old shack in the middle of nowhere. They offer Justine’s parents’ caravan a B&B. Symbol of Justine’s childhood memories and her nostalgia for travel, wild camping, sharing and laughing with family. Because The Hennedricks family shows it very wellinevitable gap between dreams of the ideal family and reality. A rather harsh reality, since Justine also juggles money problems.
Justine is especially sorry to see that the transplant did not take place within their blended family, despite the couple’s love for each other. She suffers from differences in education methods, lack of communication and everyone’s efforts. Ludo has difficulty taming Justine’s son Henri (Ferdinand Redouloux). Justine herself doesn’t really find her place with Joseph. And the two boys are neither the same age nor the same interests.
The solution germinates in Justine’s preoccupied mind. Get back on the road with the caravan and try to create family harmony. Resistance, bad humor, secrecy, false notes and revelations will be there. And a pan flute from Justine found by Henri will be the missing link to unite this family.
If Laurence Arné knew how to accurately dose the ultra-benevolence of its main characters, the characterization of the ex-spouses is a little too archetypal. Ludo’s ex is sometimes complaining and lecturing, sometimes in silent retirement, which limits the dialogue. And that of Justine (Yannick Choirat) is a narrow-minded “kéké”, who shows off with his car and trashes Ludo whenever he gets the chance.
With its freshness and its punchy lines, The Hennedricks family turns out to be a very pleasant family and musical comedy. And Laurence Arné thus pays a beautiful tribute to mothers who manage to take on their adult role while maintaining their little girl’s dreams.
The Hennedricks family by Laurence Arné, in theaters on June 26, 2024. Above is the trailer. Find all our trailers here.
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