Red Riding Hood

 

 

Red Riding Hood is another one of those movies that is a re-imagining of a fairy tale that everyone grew up knowing. Only in this go around instead of just a big bad wolf, we have a werewolf that starts going after villagers even though they have continually been providing a monthly tribute. Red Riding Hood ends up being almost a mystery as the audience is trying to figure out at the same time as Red who the werewolf actually ends up being. The movie ends up being like a teen werewolf/heart throb movie that is trying to be similar to the Twilight franchise that has been able to market to the teenage girls and that is the demographic Red Riding Hood was marketing toward. After seeing the movie the marketing should have gone in a completely different direction as the movie did not meet up with the way it was put together in the trailers.

 

Amanda Seyfried in the role of Valerie is just okay. Seyfried is still a young actress and while she struggles at times to carry the movie she gives a good effort, just at times you feel like she is simply reading her lines and not invested int he role at all. From this Seyfried shows virtually no emotion as her face has the same expression throughout the movie, so she does accomplish that Twilight similarity at least. Shiloh Fernandez in the role of Peter does an okay job as well. This is the first role I have seen him in and he plays the teen heart throb role just how one would expect. At times he came off very wooden and he definitely has a lot of work to do if he wants to have memorable performances in the future. Max Irons in the role of Henry, the third in the love triangle does one of those performances that makes you go "ehhh." While he is part of the love triangle he ends up being fairly forgettable. I think the three leads really struggled simply because the chemistry was lacking. Seyfried did not connect with either of the love interest and from that you don't feel like the rivalry is real. The supporting cast is lacking as well as no one really invested in the roles and I think the big aspect for that may simply be that their was no depth written for the characters.

 

The story for Red Riding Hood ended up being different from what I was expecting. Based on the trailers and the fact that it was being directed by Catherine Hardwicke, who directed the first Twilight movie, I was expecting a take on the fairy tale that was very similar in feel to Twilight. Gratefully, the story for Red Riding Hood was not too similar to twilight, other then the sort of love triangle and it was far from the fairy tale everyone knows. The story having the dark aspect to the film and not the happy fairy tale we are told as kids is definitely closer to what the original Grimm tale would have been like. Even with this dark feel it really struggled in the end and the story was not where it needed to be in order for the movie to be a strong one. The pacing felt back and forth as it seemed to drag a little in the middle only to rush the climax. Even though it dragged I felt like it built for a good pay-off only to rush the ending. The rushed ending was made up for slightly by the after credit scene.

 

Red Riding Hood ends up being a slightly above average movie Although the acting was a little disappointing in my mind and I think part of the problem in that was simply the lack of chemistry between the three leads. The story was simply not what I expected and while it had its pacing issues the story not being what I was expecting did help work in the favor of the movie, just not enough to make more then just slightly above average. I did enjoy the darker aspect of the telling of the fairy tale, so I am giving red Riding Hood two and three quarter buckets of popcorn out of five. Red Riding Hood is one that if in the mood for a fairy tale it may be worth renting and watching.

 

-The Movie Man