A disturbing movie. Ellen Page does not only deserve a nomination, she deserves a win! What a performance. It was fascinating watching her. Loved the ending. A-

She was perfection personified, wasn't she?

She was.

A-


What an excellent old-fashioned psychological thriller and an amazing character study. I expected something good, but this really took be aback. I had slight problems with the ending and the fact that he actually hanged himself whereas he could have overpowered Hayley and destroyed the evidence himself. Now if makeshift's theory is correct, then it all fits. Then again, I think there is enough stuff in the film that leads me to believe that his theory, while pretty clever, is not correct. The neighbor scene aside, there are several things in the film that lead me to believe that Hayley was real. Why would they show her walking away at the end, considering Jeff was dead by then, if she was just a manifesttation? There are other things too.

The ending, however, remains pretty much my only quibble. The movie is a pitch-perfect thriller that despite only two major characters and one setting creates suspense throughout the entire film. The whole movie can only be described as really intense. The "castration" scene (which ended up being not a castration at all) made me cringe and squirm like no other scene in any film since Old Boy two years ago. The numerous attempts of Jeff to escape kept me on the edge of the seat. The most exceptional thing is that you see almost no blood in the whole film, yet it comes across as pretty harsh (and was given the highest possible rating here in Germany).

A lot has been said about the acting and I think it was amazing. Ellen Page deserves all the accolades she got for the role, but I think that with all the praise for her, Patrick Wilson's great turn is being overseen as he builds the perfect counterpart to her. Before that film, I always perceived Wilson as a very bland actor. He convinced me otherwise in Hard Candy, big time. Their interplay was amazing. The best aspect was that I was never sure who to root for. I mean I dspise pedophile like every other man, but in this film after some time I started rooting against Hayley because she just came across as a complete psycho-sadist.

Not much else can be said about the film. I don't think Sandra Oh's character was necessary as she didn't really add anything. Maybe her purpose was it to prove that Hayley was actually real. The film's conclusion as a whole is very effective, but as I said above, I did have some problems with it. The first 20 minutes of the movie or so made me feel rather uneasy because of the whole 30+ years old dude and a 14 year old girl thing, but that's exactly what the film was trying to achieve. Overall, Hard Candy is a crowing achievement which is certainly not for everyone as it tackles on a fairly complex topic and does it relatively well. An effective film that deserved a better fate at the box-office. It's one of my very favorites this year so far.

Color me disappointed. While I liked the movie, I didn't love it like everyone else here. I was really hoping I would, but somehow I figured I'd be a little disappointed. Thankfully my grade isn't any lower though, I would've been really upset. All of the performances are great. Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page are both excellent in their roles, as is Sandra Oh in her little cameo appearence. Eventually I just got a bit uninterested, it definitely let off steam as it went on, and I was never "on the edge of my seat." Also, I don't know why anyone would feel for Patrick Wilson. If you ask me, he should've been tortured even more. I think it's funny people say I'm horrible because I felt bad for the character's in THE DEVIL'S REJECTS, yet some of the same people felt bad for this fucker? At least in REJECTS they kill everyone . In this, he doesn't kill all of the young girls he has sex with, so they have to live with that for the rest of their life, which I think is way worse. So, it's a good movie, but not an amazing one, and not one I'd watch to watch again.

8/10 (B+)

The film is pretty intense, the direction is top-notch, and the acting is fantastic. I was never, ever bored. The movie never needed a drop of blood to achieve a level of discomfort. It never needed to show us the actual torture for us to feel sick (and thank God it didn't, I might have threw up at the sight of the castration). I don't think I've felt so weird watching a film, possibly ever. It's really, really bone-chilling.

A-

It's really nice to look at, and the male lead does a good job, but i found it hard to watch...not only for the obvious reasons, but also because I found the girl to be incredibly awkward pretty much all the time. She gave off a vibe that just made me not want to see or hear her...not a bad performance, exactly, just really kinda...awkward, is really the best word for it. And it was also kinda boring..plenty happened but its slow and empty and hollow and just an all around weird, unpleasant, not so good film. Oh well.

Falls apart in the third act, it totally shoots itself in the foot and too bad because it was very fascinating and riveting. I enjoyed it more then I disliked it though, the two leads also gave some really great performances

Grade - B-

As the film neared its finale, that was my first hunch. But as stated, there's the neighbor thing. And the Janelle thing. The film ultimately isn't ambiguous or aloof enough for Hayley to be such a manifestation, I think. I don't know, though. The aura of mystery in regards to why Hayley is actually there does complement that theory.

The film itself I liked, and I think it's actually one of the better produced and directed films I've seen this year. It is intense and psycho and hard to watch in that mesmerizing sort of way. But I think where I was disappointed was that I expected all those things, and it never really did anything for me other than those. It's a provocative film with a provocative idea, but what the film ultimately says? Not so provocative. Maybe if we had more reason to believe Makeshift's theory I'd be saying something different, but I don't think there's enough there. It's not a bad ending, per se, but a very cut-and-dry one, which I didn't find to mesh well with the precedings.

I also will probably be alone on this one, but I think Ellen Page's performance, while quite good at times, is akin to that of other child actors (Fanning, etc.) who feel it necessary to take on the mannerisms of adults to effect realism. While Page here does it incredibly well, her performance comes off as calculated and overaffected, and at times it rang way too false for me, as if a 10-year-old is trying to act like a 20-year-old by way of a 40-year-old. Don't know if that makes sense.

The film's good, though. Twisted and never boring.

B

Amazing indie film dealing with a taboo subject playing like a revenge film but it isn't one. The film is of very good quality all around from the sets, plot and acting. The commentary from the dvd was good insight in that it made me aware she was never in any danger of him escaping as she was allowing/wanting him to be free for a bit each time before she put him back in his place. The fake castration was unforgettable.

Grade - A

[font=century gothic]2/3's great, the ending's a copout.

I liked the performances by Page and Wilson, although I do think Page kind of hammed it up at points. I also don't get how this guy couldn't have got out of the situation a couple of times, even if she wanted him to be free. For instance the scene on the roof. The wife was trying to find him, why did he have to jump (That's where imaginary Haley makes more sense)? If he kept quiet, she might have gone away. It's not like Haley could've yelled out anything, "Help, he's raping me on the roof!". She would've given herself away.

The ending beside, this is a good film. Tense and effectively creepy.

B[/font]

I want to know how this girl found the strength to move a Man who was about 6'3 weighing roughly about 210-220 LBS, plus I can't help but to think she wasn't exactly all together in the head either??? She practically stalked him from where I was sitting watching this..

First of all, he's 6'1'', second of all, I doubt he is above 175-180 lbs...

Yeah, seriously. 210-220lbs? Bull.

Alright.. Let's say for example he was 180 LBS.. She looked like a twig compared to this guy and no way your going to convince me this 14 year old girl was THAT strong to put him in the positions he was in when he was tied up.. Not to mention the fact, the neighbor see's this kid walking around on someone's roof and doesn't call the police out of suspicion, even after stopping by the house to see if he was around??? Bottom line is this movie was just too hard to swallow and this movie has nothing on FATAL ATTRACTION as EW magazine billed this as "This Generation's FATAL ATTRACTION"....

[font=century gothic]EW billed it that? You sure? I don't think they're that dumb since the film is nothing like Fatal Attraction.[/font]

BKB, do you ever apply what you say for one film to another?



The neighbor thing is a valid flaw, I agree, but it's not really impossible to believe that she could move this guy around the house, especially if he's knocked out.

When it comes to comicbook movie FX like the coolness that SM3 showed us tonight?? Then No.. I'm easily pleased and don't nitpick the FX in a movie shown 7 months early.. Too many expectations were set forth for this trailer and I'm glad I didn't get suckered into that like the rest of you did.. In the meantime, when it comes to movie's like HARD CANDY that are displayed in REALITY Zing with the whole Pedophilia issue, then YES, I found much of this hard to grasp and believe and NO, this 14 year old Stalker would not of moved this guy around and pulled him upright tied with ropes by herself as easily as your willing to believe.. The kid also manages to pick a safe lock as though they guy simply gave her the combination and that was Bogus.. I think it boils down to the fact that this movie was praised a little too much and I got suckered into believing this was the quote "Next FATAL ATTRACTION" and it didn't even come close..

She's a smart girl. She figured out the combination based on the guy's old girlfriend. Big deal. It's not like she got it on the first try, anyways, but it's logical to think that it has something to do with her.

She was more like a smart ass at best and she figured out that combination on like the 3rd try.. No way.. There was just too much in this movie for me to really swallow and believe.. In real life, that kid would've had her neck broken the moment he wrapped his legs around her neck..

Eh... found it pretty frustrating.

Acting's great (was especially impressed by Wilson), the film's well shot but overall I found the story just... didn't work for me.
Decent, just not as effective as I thought it would be.

- B-

It's suspenseful, excellently filmed, and had me squirming in my seat. After that, it gets a lot harder for me to find much to praise in this unpleasant exploitative expierience. Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page both give fine performances but nothing to write home about. Page in particular becomes rather nerve grating after awhile. I really like the theory about her being a symbol of his guilt, because otherwise there's no way I could buy a 15 year old girl always being five steps ahead of this guy. The film has a number of scenes that make it not work, but I agree that those are smaller holes. I realize that the movie didn't want to have me entertained, but I can only give a film so much credit for making me grimace in disgust at the nasty little people on screen. C

And worse, that wasn't the only organ she was grating...