Hidden Diary (Meres et Filles) Film Review

As a lover of French cinema, I was automatically drawn to Hidden Diary with its stellar cast and a promise of subtle, meaningful drama. It did not fail to satisfy, with each member of the cast performing the thought-provoking story with excellent fragility.


Hidden Diary is about Audrey (Marina Hands of Lady Chatterley fame), who returns home to France from her hectic life as an engineer in Toronto to clear her head and decide what to do about her unplanned pregnancy. Within minutes of her arrival at the family home the difficult relationship between Audrey and her mother, Martine (Catherine Deneuve), becomes apparent; Martine is haughty towards her daughter for arriving unawares and outwardly rejects Audrey's gift of a digital camera. After numerous attempts of working in the house (which also acts as Martine's doctors surgery) Audrey decides to relocate to her grandfather's house, which has been vacant since his death some years previously. Wanting to improve the dated house and make it more hospitable, Audrey buys some mod-cons for the kitchen and whilst doing so uncovers her grandmother's, Louise (Marie-Josee Croze from Tell No One), diary. The discovery of the diary causes Audrey to pries open emotions which Martine has wished to ignore since Louise abandoned her and her brother when they were children. As more is revealed about Louise's situation, her reasons for leaving and the circumstances of her disappearance, an altogether different theory about her disappearance becomes apparent.

As the events of the narrative are slowly revealed the film, tactfully addresses the issues of individuals' perceptions, the role of women and their right to freedom but most of all the complicated relationship between mothers and daughters. Hidden Diary is both realistic and insightful. It does not handle the sensitive subjects with the melodrama which an American blockbuster would, but instead they are handled with delicacy and allowing the story to develop. Legendary Catherine Deneuve portrays the role of Martine to perfection; outwardly she conveys a woman who has strongly battled without a mother and shows little signs of how it has affected her, but behind the stern mask there are glimpses of a scared child and a fragile woman. The revelations emerge gradually throughout the film, allowing the audience to deduce the meanings of the events and its consequences, instead of pounding them out at a pace which confuses and alienates the audience. Of course this slow pace can make the film seem a little dull at times and doesn't allow you to emotionally connect with the characters, however, the realistic timescale of events does allow you to think and reflect about the issues which emerge as the film goes on.

Although far from perfection, Hidden Diary is a film which handles sensitive issues with grace and patience, and although not necessarily entertaining it is a rewarding film to watch.