Mark's Review: Hard Candy

Ok, so... going into this film, I had zero idea what it was about. I knew Ellen Page was in it, and had heard it was good... but yeah, no clue what it was about.

That being said when it began with a close-up on an on-line conversation that would make Chris Hansen blush... I got worried.

Like I said, I didn't know what Hard Candy was about, but I knew Ellen Page looked to be like... 14 in it... so naturally... this conversation worried me immediately. So sure enough the two conversing parties decide to meet in real life, at a public coffee shop... they eat some pastries, they chat about music, books etc... and then Geoff (Patrick Wilson), the 35 year old photographer who has been chatting up this 14 year old Hayley (Ellen Page) discusses a bootleg copy of a song by Goldfrapp that Hayley has to hear, but "it'd be weird for you to come back to my place".... so naturally what's the next thing that happens? Yeah... they do...

AND THEN THE MOVIE EXPLODES.... I can't even go into it, but this movie is phenomenal. It's a little difficult to watch because of subject matter, but the acting is outstanding. I don't know if Ellen got an Oscar Nod for this film, but she sure deserved one. It's a heavy movie, that you really can't turn away from... it requires your attention. It's a strong STRONG story line, that gets pushed along by clever cinematography, and great acting by both characters. The movie takes place pretty much entirely at Geoff's house, and only features the two actors, except for a quick cameo from Sandra Oh of Sideways... yeah... I'll credit her with that, and not her subpar tv show which hurts my soul. :)

see this movie!

mm