Movie Talking: Hard Candy -NO SPOILERS-
Good or bad, the reviewers at Rottentomatoes.com all aseem to agree -or at least most of them do- that Hard Candy is an exploitation film. Hmm. We'll get to that later.
The consensus puts this flick at 66%. Cream of the Crop is only slightly less enthusiastic, rating in at 65%. It qualifies for Fresh status, but should you bother seeing it?
The film is impossible to begin with; it's a two-hander. How can just two actors keep us interested for the entire film? I know the box lists Sandra Oh, but if you're a Grey's Anatomy fan hoping to see her stretch... it's barely a cameo. This is Patrick Wilson's (Jeff) and to a greater extent, Ellen Page's (Hayley) movie, and as much as I love Sandra Oh she isn't needed here. If anything her recognizable face might be jarring in the midst of the tension. Nonetheless she doesn't take anything away from this thriller.
The premise is a 14 year-old girl rendez-vous with a 32 year-old photographer after chatting online. He takes her home, and a tense game of cat-and-mouse is played for the next hour-and-a-half. Why does he have so many photos of young girls on his walls? Cos he photographs models for a living. Is he a pervert? Why is she so angry? Is she naively looking for a father figure?
This movie made me super uncomfortable cos I was questioning my limits the entire time. How much is too much? When does art become exploitation?
The fact is I never left the realm of the film and wondered if I should turn it off. Firstly because the performances are amazing. Ellen Page (X Men 3) is a name you'll hear again and again, and not -I hope- in the same breath as the typical party-starlets like L.Lo and that ilk. It's clear that director David Slade knew what he was doing, but Page's performance is beyond direction. Her choices are perfect, and she restrained herself where a lesser actor would've been over the top.
Patrick Wilson (Angels In America) is equally matched despite his 14 years of extra life experience and slimmer resume.
I loved this picture because it was surprising in its boldness, and refreshing in its subtlety. As the story unfolds -and it does, one excrutiatingly tense petal at a time- the audience is allowed to breath in between the moments where you literally hold a hand over your mouth and stare wide-eyed at the screen and wonder "where is this going?!", and "when's it gonna stop?!". I mean that in a good way.
If this isn't a 'must see' movie, it's at least a 'should see'.
It does what a thriller should; entertains, makes you think, shocks you, and leaves you uncomfortable and thinking some more.
And if you rethink your online habits... thats fine too.
Hey, let's start a rating system. I review enough movies on this site, I should have my own rating system...
I give this movie...
**** out of ***** stars. (4/5)
FOR GOOD FILMS WITH RELEVANT SUBJECT MATTER:
The Woodsman
Birth
The consensus puts this flick at 66%. Cream of the Crop is only slightly less enthusiastic, rating in at 65%. It qualifies for Fresh status, but should you bother seeing it?
The film is impossible to begin with; it's a two-hander. How can just two actors keep us interested for the entire film? I know the box lists Sandra Oh, but if you're a Grey's Anatomy fan hoping to see her stretch... it's barely a cameo. This is Patrick Wilson's (Jeff) and to a greater extent, Ellen Page's (Hayley) movie, and as much as I love Sandra Oh she isn't needed here. If anything her recognizable face might be jarring in the midst of the tension. Nonetheless she doesn't take anything away from this thriller.
The premise is a 14 year-old girl rendez-vous with a 32 year-old photographer after chatting online. He takes her home, and a tense game of cat-and-mouse is played for the next hour-and-a-half. Why does he have so many photos of young girls on his walls? Cos he photographs models for a living. Is he a pervert? Why is she so angry? Is she naively looking for a father figure?
This movie made me super uncomfortable cos I was questioning my limits the entire time. How much is too much? When does art become exploitation?
The fact is I never left the realm of the film and wondered if I should turn it off. Firstly because the performances are amazing. Ellen Page (X Men 3) is a name you'll hear again and again, and not -I hope- in the same breath as the typical party-starlets like L.Lo and that ilk. It's clear that director David Slade knew what he was doing, but Page's performance is beyond direction. Her choices are perfect, and she restrained herself where a lesser actor would've been over the top.
Patrick Wilson (Angels In America) is equally matched despite his 14 years of extra life experience and slimmer resume.
I loved this picture because it was surprising in its boldness, and refreshing in its subtlety. As the story unfolds -and it does, one excrutiatingly tense petal at a time- the audience is allowed to breath in between the moments where you literally hold a hand over your mouth and stare wide-eyed at the screen and wonder "where is this going?!", and "when's it gonna stop?!". I mean that in a good way.
If this isn't a 'must see' movie, it's at least a 'should see'.
It does what a thriller should; entertains, makes you think, shocks you, and leaves you uncomfortable and thinking some more.
And if you rethink your online habits... thats fine too.
Hey, let's start a rating system. I review enough movies on this site, I should have my own rating system...
I give this movie...
**** out of ***** stars. (4/5)
FOR GOOD FILMS WITH RELEVANT SUBJECT MATTER:
The Woodsman
Birth
posted by johnnykocktail at 11:22 pm
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