Hard Candy

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 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.

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 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.

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!