Hard Candy

Not a day goes by that the news doesn't bring us a story about a child who has met someone on the internet and was either molested or killed, it's a sad fact of our current reality that, for some reason, there seems to be pedophiles around every corner. Now, I could go into a diatribe about blame and responsibility, but I'm not going there, that's just too easy. But, I did just see a movie that will make you think about this topic in ways that you never thought you would. It's called Hard Candy.



Here's the basic story: Haley has just met Jeff online and has decided to meet him in person. Now, that statement has nothing specifically wrong with it, until I tell you that Haley is 14 and Jeff is in his 30s! When we first meet this duo, they're in a coffee shop, with Haley desperately trying to sound and act older and the slick Jeff saying and doing all the right things to slowly reel the little girl in, Patrick Wilson, who plays Jeff, brings just the right amount of sleaze into the role that you really hate him! As they talk and get to know each other, you can see Jeff manipulating the conversation to lure Haley further and further into his trap, which eventually he springs and Haley is in his car and they're on the way to Jeff's house.

Now, while you might be thinking to yourself right about now, "Hey! I thought you were the Bad Movie Guy, not the Kiddie Porn Guy!", let me explain. Hard Candy takes a left turn that will have you both cheering and feeling slightly uncomfortable...at the same time! Director David Slade has crafted a movie that will have your head spinning, Slade turns the tables in such a way that he actively wants you to feel sorry for this predator who gets the tables turned on him. And, if you do start to feel a bit sorry for Jeff, you almost immediately wonder about yourself, feeling bad for this monster! And Haley, the cute girl played by Ellen Page, is she an innocent victim, a friend looking for revenge, or an online vigilante stalking the stalkers?

I'm giving Hard Candy four cigars out of four, because , while you'll feel slightly sleazy yourself watching this, you won't be able to take your eyes off the screen, and, in the end, you'll wonder what it was that you just watched. Is Jeff telling the truth? Is Haley seeking revenge or is she unstable too? This movie poses as many questions as it answers. If you haven't seen Hard Candy, get down to the video store and get it...NOW!!! This movie is an instant classic, and it's a movie that you'll want to watch a second time, I know I did. Hard Candy is one of those movies, not unlike I Spit On Your Grave, that will be misunderstood as misogynistic and anti-woman, but if you pay attention, you'll see that this is a feminist horror movie that every girl (of the right age) should see! So, until next time, when I'll try to not be so cerebral (it just isn't me!), remember that the best movies are bad movies.