Hard Candy

I thought Elliot Page's acting was amazing. Her character was annoying and made me want to root for "Jeff" despite the circumstance. "Hayley" was not developed enough and made you wonder why do all that? Ending was flawed, Jeff could have easily chosen a different outcome or at least try to.. Could have been a really great movie but they wasted the potential.. 6/10 mostly for the acting.

This is a very difficult film to like. It deals with tricky issues, features some committed performances, but ends up adding up to less than the sum of its parts. Overall, not worth sitting through.

I just screened this film at LGF last night. I was quite intrigued for the first forty minutes. Then it all kind of fell apart for me. In it's best moments this film explores the complexities of vengeance and psychology. It tries to be clever by pulling a role reversal -- but this eventually wears thin and the dialog becomes didactic and contrived. I still think it is worth seeing for the strength of the leads alone. Patrick Wilson does a fine job as a "suspected" pedophile. He elicits both sympathy and disgust. Ellen Page as the young girl is absolutely fantastic. Her performance is brilliant and even frightening at times. She's good even when the script can't match her talent. I look forward to seeing her in many films to come. Finally a young actress who is more than just a pretty face -- I'm so tired of the Natalie Portmans, the Hillary Duffs, and the Jessica Albas of the world. Good luck with your career Ms. Page.

All in all, Hard Candy is worth seeing. Maybe I'm just a sucker for movies with tiny casts and realtime pacing. But there are some genuinely suspenseful moments in the film, although in the hands of lesser actors these scenes would disintegrate. And though I was annoyed by the contrivances and implausibilities of the script, I found myself the next day thinking about some of the issues raised therein.

At times Hard Candy reminded me of Polanski's Death and the Maiden, though H.C. is nowhere near as good. Ellen Page's Haley character is similar to Sigourney Weaver's character in the Polanski film. Both women are terrifying through the cold precision of their revenge. The problem with the Haley character is that she would have to be supernatural to accomplish the things she does in this film. And of course if she was supernatural, we'd have a completely different film on our hands -- High Plains Drifter.

At the centre of HARD CANDY (no pun intended) is the burning question: Whose side are you on? The sick, manipulative, and twisted pedophile, or the sadistic, unnecessarily cruel, and psychotic sociopath? Either way, you, the viewer, lose, so what's the point, right? I mean, any film that almost compels the neutral viewer to support the pedophile is just tasteless and baseless. This film is completely biased, and is essentially a sadistic revenge flick catered only to those who have been affected adversely by pedophiles. I will not try to spoil the ending, because, let's face it, there is nothing to spoil. The movie is predictable and cheesy and the ending is of no consequence.

Then there's this: if viewers are supposed to believe that a petite fourteen year old girl is capable of such things, then at the very least, she should have the power to consent to sexual intercourse, right? I'm not taking sides or suggesting anything of an immoral or grotesque nature, but the movie is quite contradictory in the sense that a mere fourteen year old is capable of devising and implementing such horrific and well-thought plans, which makes her essentially seem as an adult, and which ruins the whole message the movie was supposed to convey.

Perhaps David Slade should stick to five-minute music videos, as a full length feature is well beyond his capacity.

And, for the record, what was the point of Sandra Oh? This has to be one of the more pointless and awkward cameos I have ever seen. And I actually admire Sandra Oh.

There are a few good things though: the story actually plays out properly (in a cinematic/screenplay sense only, though it gets weaker and less watchable as it progresses), the character interaction is absorbing, and the acting is top-notch (Patrick Wilson is awesome in this film; Ellen Page is quite annoying and sickening but does her job well). But really, what was the point? There were so many questions left unanswered that there was no genuine catharsis. The so-called ending is cheap and rather blunt and purposeless.

I think 4/10 is a generous score. This film gets 2 stars (out of 4; also generous). Even if I made a Top 1000, this film would not come close to making the cut. Recommended only for viewers who have been affected by pedophiles. Everyone else will feel robbed of their time. I was expecting much better seeing as a trustworthy source recommended this; I will now take future recommendations from this source with a pinch of salt.

David Slade, you suck. This movie sucked. I had planned to watch your latest feature, 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, but I may just make a pass. Go back to music videos. I actually enjoyed STP's 'Sour Girl' video...

Well. That was disturbing. Though it is not one to recommend for "Family Night," Hard Candy offers an intriguing one-time viewing thanks to the effectiveness of its two-man show approach. Let's make that a one-man, one-girl show. I don't need a rash of emails reminding me of my chauvinism.

What the filmmakers have done is said, "Hey, Patrick Wilson! Ellen Page! We're placing the two of you in a restricted space and putting the entire movie on your shoulders. Best of luck!" Granted, I'm paraphrasing, but this is no exaggeration. There are a total of five people in the movie, and only Wilson and Page are given more than five minutes of screen time. Given this challenge, the two thespians more than hold their own.

I don't know if Wilson should take this as a compliment, but he's very convincing as a dangerously innocent-seeming pedophile. What makes him so creepy is his charm. He's a smooth, suave sexual predator. Most young girls are smart enough to do wind sprints the moment they see a dirty, unkempt man who looks to be carrying more diseases than Paris Hilton.

But Wilson is a good-looking, successful photographer. He can't be bad, right? "You look older than you are, and you certainly act older than you are," he tells Hayley, perfectly manipulating her young, fragile emotions. And hey, he can't be dangerous. After all, he obviously has the most innocent of intentions! Why else would he reassure her that he's aware of the legal boundaries? She's puddy in his hands.

This all starts quietly enough, but once they get to his house gears are shifted and everything goes haywire. That's all I'm revealing regarding the story, but I do have to give kudos to Ms. Page who turns in an impressive performance. I did feel she was a bit too precocious and world-wise at times, but she still does a great job showcasing a wide range of emotions of this potential young victim.

Despite the interesting concept of the two-person show, it clearly has its limitations. At 103 minutes this is just way too long. After a while it becomes too obvious that certain scenes and lines of dialogue are, like most songs on recent Rolling Stones albums, inserted for no other reason than to serve as filler. The worst example being a scene involving Sandra Oh's neighbor character. The only purpose it serves is to deliver a little faux drama. That subplot is dropped faster than Britney Spears' baby, never to be heard from again.

Hard Candy refuses to send you prancing home with a smile on your face or a song in your heart, but if nothing else it serves as a strong warning that you should probably pay close attention to who your kids are communicating with online. At least warn them that sometimes the person they least suspect could be the one to be most wary of.

A quick word of warning to all you guys: there is one particular scene where what we perceive is happening will absolutely make you squirm in your seat. You'll most likely watch it through squinted eyes. I haven't felt that uncomfortable at the theater since the My Own Private Idaho fiasco. I suggest you be prepared.