There’s nothing sweet about Hard Candy

Hard Candy (2005)
103 minutes
Rated – R
Directed By: David Slade
Starring:  Ellen Page, Patrick Wilson, Sandra Oh

 

 

Grade:  B

 

A slasher film?  Psychological thriller?  A twisted fantasy?  A wake up call to parents who don’t know the power of the Internet and the access it gives to online predators?  Yes.  All of the above.

Hard Candy is David Slade’s feature debut and although it’s not a great film, it’s certainly one that will stir up discussion.  This also showcases Ellen Page (who is widely known for the recent Juno) in one of her first starring roles.  If your image of Page is that quirky and witty pregnant teenager, then wait to you see her in this.

A handsome and slick-talking 32-year-old man named Jeff (Patrick Wilson) talks to a flirtatious, 14-year-old girl named Hayley (Ellen Page, who was 17 at the time) online.  They mutually decide to meet at a coffee shop, and then they go back to Jeff’s place.  Uh oh.  I see where this is going, but the thing is that I really didn’t.  

The beginning of the movie is as well made and intriguing as any other great thrillers.  We question whether or not the seemingly inevitable will happen, which truly we’re hoping won’t.  But as events fold, we just keep inching closer and closer to something we don’t want to see:  the adult photographer with the little girl, alone in his home.

But then the movie really does something spectacular.  As if my innuendos didn’t raise awareness that something memorable was about to occur, I cannot continue the plot summary without spoiling the movie.  

What I can say is how this very low-budget film, consisting of two main characters that are indulged in explicit and overpowering dialogue, was suspenseful from the beginning to end.  You find out that Hayley is years younger than what her intelligence shows, though she displays the naivety of youth throughout as well.  And Jeff, is he just playing the innocent card just so he can carry on his perverted fantasy, or is it vise versa?

Ellen Page and Patrick Wilson give extraordinary performances throughout.  The screenplay, written by Brian Nelson, is paced very well and gives this movie all the right turns up to the conclusion.  In a time when MySpace has opened doors and new opportunities to pedophiles, Hard Candy is a reminder to all perverts out there that people are always watching.

But the question that I was left with once the movie was over was:  Who was the victim?  And also, did I feel bad or should I feel bad for what happened?  I still don’t know.