Red Riding Hood
Mar. 14th, 2011 08:57 pmSaw the film Red Riding Hood Saturday, and tried to dampen my expectations–more like hopes, in actuality–even though its star, Amanda Seyfried, was brilliant in the comedy/horror/coming of age flick Jennifer’s Body. Since the movie’s website and merchandising is clearly aimed at the teen audience, if not specifically to the irritating Twilight niche, I fought to keep that from coloring my experience.
And, by gum, I was utterly, pleasantly surprised. The film was a surreal wildlife painting in motion. The sparing use of colors made certain hues reach out with life. The often strange flora, and flowers in winter, seemed a fond nod to the ’80’s film The Company Of Wolves.
The dialogue and acting were accessible and personable. The language was modern, yet not overbearingly so. References to dispatching werewolves and evidence of such were accurate historically, as were the Catholics tools of the trade. Gary Oldman played a wonderfully single-minded and cruel werewolf hunter and priest. The uneducated, unquestioning religious views, and planned marriages for money rather than love, and the default fear of the villagers to anything out of the ordinary, as portrayed in the movie, lined up with the years of werewolf lore, and by proxy the European peasants of the time, I’ve digested. If one is expecting a werewolf transformation scene, or a bipedal wolf-man, neither are featured in the movie. This didn’t disappoint me, as it would’ve distracted from the plot. The werewolf was like those described in the time period, not bipedal-style man-wolves but large "demonic", yet realistic appearing, wolves.
The reveal of the werewolf came as a surprise. I was tickled to be so, as often such genre films are formulaic. Also, to me the finale was a satisfying one, especially when most
werewolf movies end tragically or hopelessly.
To me the film was a pretty fantasy, a fable on the big screen. I’m very happy I went.
And, by gum, I was utterly, pleasantly surprised. The film was a surreal wildlife painting in motion. The sparing use of colors made certain hues reach out with life. The often strange flora, and flowers in winter, seemed a fond nod to the ’80’s film The Company Of Wolves.
The dialogue and acting were accessible and personable. The language was modern, yet not overbearingly so. References to dispatching werewolves and evidence of such were accurate historically, as were the Catholics tools of the trade. Gary Oldman played a wonderfully single-minded and cruel werewolf hunter and priest. The uneducated, unquestioning religious views, and planned marriages for money rather than love, and the default fear of the villagers to anything out of the ordinary, as portrayed in the movie, lined up with the years of werewolf lore, and by proxy the European peasants of the time, I’ve digested. If one is expecting a werewolf transformation scene, or a bipedal wolf-man, neither are featured in the movie. This didn’t disappoint me, as it would’ve distracted from the plot. The werewolf was like those described in the time period, not bipedal-style man-wolves but large "demonic", yet realistic appearing, wolves.
The reveal of the werewolf came as a surprise. I was tickled to be so, as often such genre films are formulaic. Also, to me the finale was a satisfying one, especially when most
werewolf movies end tragically or hopelessly.
To me the film was a pretty fantasy, a fable on the big screen. I’m very happy I went.