Hard Candy (2005)

July 1, 2022 8:48 AM

Hayley (Elliot Page) is a smart, charming, young teenager. Jeff (Patrick Wilson) is a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, and an impromptu fashion shoot lead them back to Jeff's place. Jeff thinks it's his lucky night. It is not.

Directed by David Slade. Rated 67% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Currently streaming in the US on Freevee (formerly iMDb), Hoopla, Tubi, Kanopy, and Plex.

posted by DirtyOldTown (11 comments total)

I remember when this movie came out, and it is BRUTAL. The friend I saw with is still a little pissed at me for it. It is not for the faint of heart. Having said that, it's a fascinating movie because Hayley is an even more gifted predator.
posted by miss-lapin at 10:27 AM on July 1, 2022 [1 favorite]

Granted, FF is for discussing things you have seen, but if anyone is here wondering about the film, the guy is a pedophile/rapist/murderer, and the teen isn't trapped, she's springing a trap. There is implied torture, suicide, etc.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:37 AM on July 1, 2022

That Rotten Tomatoes rating is criminally low. Great film, but I’m not sure I want to watch it again.
posted by sacrifix at 1:31 PM on July 1, 2022

I didn't mean to spoiler.

The implied torture is challenging. If you're at all concerned you can't take it, feel no shame sitting this one out.
posted by miss-lapin at 1:48 PM on July 1, 2022

During _that_ scene, you could've heard a pin drop in the cinema where I saw this originally. Really good and tense film but profoundly unconformable with the shifting power dynamics.

That poster is also something else.
posted by slimepuppy at 3:07 AM on July 2, 2022 [2 favorites]

Every time I hear about this movie, I immediately think “holy shit, they actually made a film out of the Andrew Vachss book. I’m not sure I can work-up the courage to watch.” Then I remember it’s a totally different story, but I’m still not sure I can work-up the courage to watch. I love Page, though, so...maybe???

And, yeah, that poster is brilliant.
posted by Thorzdad at 5:22 AM on July 2, 2022

One thing I love about this movie is it's accusation of the viewer. The viewer is often put in the point of view of the actual victim in a similar situation to the victim. for example in the simulated torture scene both the audience AND the victim is deceived. No one gets out of this movie cleanly including the audience. It reminds me of Peeping Tom in that respect where the audience is also guilty.
posted by miss-lapin at 10:48 AM on July 2, 2022 [4 favorites]

Yeah, I think it was Ebert's review that was something like, "I'm not sure whose fetish it is to watch a teenage girl torture a man in his thirties, but I'm uncomfortably sure this film is for them." Which is to say, I feel like this movie is ostensibly an indictment of predators, which of course we all agree are bad, but I think it's also kind of a movie for sadists; and by the end of the movie, I think we're meant to feel a little like...um...wait, is what she did, like, okay? Are we, for watching this?
posted by kittens for breakfast at 8:12 AM on July 3, 2022 [1 favorite]

I don't think of it as a movie for sadists so much about confronting the viewer with how uncomfortably close their own desires are to the victim's. I think it's meant to really you think about why we watch rapesploitation films. To this end it makes me think about Violation-another film that grueling shows you what that revenge would actually entail (in this case for the victim). Violation deals with some other issues, but it's unflinching "This isn't glamorized revenge for YOUR enjoyment" is very clear.
posted by miss-lapin at 9:36 AM on July 3, 2022

Apologies for a billion typos. I blame boozy brunch.
posted by miss-lapin at 9:37 AM on July 3, 2022

I remember thinking this was either a great movie or a terrible one but who wants to bring up that discussion in polite conversation.

Also once accidently recommended it to a girl who liked dark comedies but I completely mixed up the title and thought I recommended Jawbreaker. I was unable to convince her it was an honest mistake.
posted by M Edward at 3:41 PM on July 3, 2022 [2 favorites]