Hard Candy (2005)

A teenage girl raids a man's home, suspecting he is a pedophile, in order to expose him.

Director:

David Slade

Writer:

Brian Nelson

Stars:

Patrick Wilson, Ellen Page, Sandra Oh

5 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Patrick Wilson	...	Jeff Kohlver
Ellen Page	...	Hayley Stark
Sandra Oh	...	Judy Tokuda
Odessa Rae	...	Janelle Rogers (as Jennifer Holmes)
G.J. Echternkamp	...	Nighthawks Clerk (as Gilbert John)

Storyline

After three weeks of chatting with the thirty-two year old photographer Jeff Kohlver over the Internet, fourteen year old Hayley Stark meets him in the Nighthawks coffee shop. Hayley flirts with him in spite of the age difference and proposes to go to his house. Once there, she prepares a screwdriver for them and Jeff passes out. When he awakes, he is tied up to a chair, and Hayley accuses him of pedophilia. Jeff denies the accusation, and Hayley begins to torture him in a cat and mouse game.

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Plot Keywords:

coffee shop | pedophile | chatting | age difference | photographer | 

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Taglines:

Strangers shouldn't talk to little girls.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for disturbing violent and aberrant sexual content involving a teen, and for language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 May 2006 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Gorki slatkiš

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$950,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£527,910 (UK) (16 June 2006)

Gross:

£1,728,022 (UK) (7 July 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Vulcan Productions, Launchpad Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Some working titles were "Vendetta" and "Snip Snip". "Hard Candy" was finally chosen because it implies both sweetness and spice. The expression is also slang for an under-aged girl, amongst pedophiles who troll the internet.

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Goofs

While Jeff is tied to the table you can clearly see the padding in his socks where the ropes are tied.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Hayley Stark: Mmm. This is soo good. I want more.
Jeff Kohlver: Don't get greedy.

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Connections

Featured in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #18.86 (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Freak"
Written and Produced by Mark Bell
Performed by LFO
Published by Warp Music
Courtesy of Warp Records
Used by Permission of EMI Virgin Music, Inc.

User Reviews

Never underestimate Music video /commercial filmmakers.

This sure is some thriller.Darn those MTV filmmakers,when they really use their heads they show some of their true visual talents.Like the debut made by Mark Romanek in One Hour Photo, David Slade really excels as a director who keeps things extremely intense and gripping with a touch of shocking elements and pure disturbance due to its story.

A film about a pedophile who invites a 14 year old girl into his house only to lead a disturbing game of cat and mouse with shocking consequences and shocking twists.

Along with the superb debut and impressive writing ,it is actually the young Ellen Page who carries the film.You won't find her not mentioned in any review to this film.Hers is a performance worth mentioning,because she takes a huge shift towards her character. Wilson,on the other hand does an adequate job.

A surprisingly effective thriller and of course disturbing in the most shocking sense of way.This is sure one psychological thriller you ought to check out.