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I was lucky enough to be in one of the first test audiences for this film in Los Angeles. Knowing nothing about the film except that it's being described as suspense/horror, and stars Patrick Wilson and a 14 year old girl, I went in expecting another bad to mediocre slash film. I couldn't have been more wrong!

Hard Candy is an intense psychological drama, with incredible performances by both Ellen Page and Patrick Wilson. The two actors are practically the only two people with lines in the film, aside from some brief appearances by Sandra Oh and Jennifer Holmes. Thusfar I have only seen Wilson in The Alamo and Phantom of the Opera, but I was blown away with how he handled this performance. The slow, suspenseful film is set mainly in the Los Angeles home of photographer Jeff, a 32 year old man whom Hayley, a mature 14 year old girl who met him online, suspects to be a pedophile. The pacing was steady, and phenomenal - after a brief exposition we get into the real suspense about 20 minutes into the film, and it doesn't let up from there. The cinematography and camera work went excellently with the film. Rather than being extremely gory, the adult themes of the film lead to a more psychological creepiness. There are also questions that remain unanswered until the end of the film, when everything is wrapped up nicely - leaving you puzzled to the true identities and motives of the characters throughout most of the duration.

Horror films are not my cup of tea, but psychological drama is. An early fall release date has been rumored, and I can only hope this movie doesn't get lost in the shuffle between summer blockbusters and Oscar season. I also hope Lion's Gate markets this film for what it is, and doesn't try to aim for fans of slash, or a teen crowd.

I saw this at a late night screening at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and of the 35 films I saw there I would rank this #4. for about the first 10 minutes I didn't know if I was going to like it or where it was going to go but man once this roller-coaster starts moving it's a psychological thriller. Great stylized look to this film too. The acting and story is intense and you can't avert your eyes from the screen even though there are times where you think you might have to. I like movies that have the feel of a stage play and the emotional volleyball between the two principal actors is amazing. A little far-fetched but so what. This is a good movie. I give it a 8.5 out of a possible 10 and would recommend this film.

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.

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.

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.

When the film begins, a pedophile is chatting with a very young looking girl, Hayley (Ellen Page). Soon, she agrees to meet him at a coffee house and the guy is super-creepy as he pretends to care about the girl and her interests. Soon, he's convinced her to come home with him and you can only assume he's going to molest Hayley. However, Jeff (Patrick Wilson) soon learns that while he thinks he's in control and will be raping the girl, he's soon drugged, trussed up and being physically and emotionally tormented by Hayley. Surprisingly, this makes up at least 80% of the film...80% where this older than her years girl torments Jeff and makes him wish he was dead, as death would be easier than dealing with Hayley and her 'games'.

This is a super difficult film to watch and I strongly advise you to think twice before you watch it because of the subject matter. If you've been a victim of sexual abuse, I could easily see the film's content bringing up horrible flashbacks...same with anyone who has been tortured. It cannot help but push the viewer's buttons. Additionally, many who haven't been through this might also want to beg off watching this one...it IS intense and often hard to watch. It is NOT a film for the squeamish. However, despite these warnings, the film is able to balance physical violence...not showing too much and often leaving the worst of it to your imagination.

My only reservations about the film, other than the violence, is that I would have loved to know more about Hayley--especially since she doesn't talk or act like the 14 year-old she's supposed to be in the film. She's more like a 20-something with her clever puns and verbal dexterity. Plus, WHAT IS HER MOTIVATION? While none of this ruins the film in any way, it does leave you wondering.

For the right audience, this film is exquisitely made and worth seeing. Also, I was surprised with the film as there was a line about Roman Polanski. While he IS a convicted child rapist, so often Hollywood has somehow excused this...but "Hard Candy" certainly doesn't!

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.

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...

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.

After three weeks chatting with the thirty-two years old photographer Jeff Kohlver (Patrick Wilson) in Internet, the fourteen years old Hayley Stark (Ellen Page) meets him in the Nighthawks coffee shop. Hayley flirts with him in spite of the difference of ages and proposes to go to his house. Once there, she prepares 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, and Hayley begin to torture him, in a mouse and cat game.

"Hard Candy" is an unpleasant story very similar to Roman Polanski's "Death and the Maiden", only the motives are different, political versus pedophilia. This film is well acted, and both Ellen Page and Patrick Wilson are superb in their performances. However, the sick and deranged Hayley Stark is a vile, no matter how despicable Jeff Kohlver might be. In "Death and the Maiden", the character of Sigourney Weaver was a political activist that was tortured by the character of Ben Kingsley, therefore the viewer is able to accept her revenge. But in "hard Candy", Hayley Stark is sicker than Jeff Kohlver and it is impossible to feel any sympathy for her character. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Garota Má.com" ("Bad Girl.com")

Look at the movie poster, for crying out loud! It's Little Red Riding Hood in a bear trap!

The reviewer who did us all the tremendous service of informing us that there is a coda to the original Grimm Bro's tale of "The Little Red Cap" in which the protagonist lures the wolf to fall to his death from the rooftop, cements this.

I was not prepared for this movie. It is disturbing, and not just because I am a man. The ways in which Haley taunts and torments Jeff psychologically as well as physically are truly cruel and punishing.

(BTW, if you're REALLY looking for a reference to Japanese pop culture, it's in there. It's the spin of the chair in the very first scene we see Jeff tied up, where Haley says, "You think this is torture? This is nothing." What's the reference? Go watch the first entry in the "Guinea Pig" series. If this movie disturbed you, stop at the first of those movies, though; you have been warned).

There were lots of inconsistencies, like for example how a 14 year old girl could get a grown man strung up from the rafters while he was totally unconscious. But that's just niggling. It is a modern take on a fairy tale, after all.

If you are a careful viewer, the brief but horrible power of the final scene, together with its extremely important and revealing dialogue, should carry with you long after the more obvious (but far overlong) scenes of awfulness have faded from your mind.

Bonus points: who can understand the point of Sandra Oh's character in the film? Meaninglessness? You decide.

I saw this film last night at a free showing and was completely blown away. I didn't expect it to be anything more than a clichéd murder story. How wrong I was! The story moves along at a gripping pace, the cinematography is beautiful (simple and complex simultaneously. A perfect balance.) The acting is very believable. I think anyone would enjoy this film, as the audience I saw it with was a mixture of people from a number of different socioeconomic backgrounds and everyone seemed to like what they saw. The only aspect of the film that worries me is that the main character is going to be viewed as a sort of embodiment of an angry, man hating feminist, rather than a girl who is on a mission to erase the horrors of pedophilia. The people I saw it with agreed that they were nervous that the film will only reinforce cultural attitudes about feminist as man hating, psycho bitches, which is simply a generalization. But remove that possible attitude towards the film and it is quite good. I really enjoyed it. Thumbs up.

I saw the trailer for Hard Candy when I went to see Hostel (which sucked, but we'll not get into that). I was immediately drawn to it. It's suppose to come out April 14th but it came through with the Central Florida Film Festival two weeks early. I could have waited and paid less and got a better seat, but oh my god, even with a crap view I was blown away.

The cinematography was masterful, the acting was spectacular, the dialogue was a little awkward in pints but never really faltered, and the plot! You would think a movie consisting of 2 characters in a house would have it moments of tediousness, but not at all. So many psychological thrills it will set your mind a boggling.

But this time, sober & retired, it just didn't make sense, her having the strength of a grown man handling dead weight TWICE?! lol! All I could think throughout this was "put a sock in his damn mouth!" but he should have been on the floor tied up most of the time with handcups she already had in her backpack, and still doomed up.

And why not cut off his peen, dang it?!

This would have been a slam dunk if those simple acts had occurred, along with "who the fck are you?" would have helped to know that too.

Thanks!

Opinions on this film do vary considerably which, given the subject matter, is probably inevitable. The subject matter itself is the main point which carries the film, and it really could have been a much better film if the length had been shortened, and the direction made much tighter. Plot descriptions have been explained in so much detail that there's nothing really to add, but on viewing the film it does become undeniably tedious and, in parts, frankly irritating. The denouement is weak and unsatisfactory, and the whole effort somewhat disappointing. It is undoubtedly a film with a reputation higher than its actual substance.