Red Riding Hood

We all have our favorite fairy tales. Maybe yours is the romantic Cinderella, or the more suspenseful Hansel and Gretal. Or maybe it's Red Riding Hood, the story of a young girl who meets a wolf on the way to her grandmother's house. I know Red Riding Hood was always one of my favorites, so when I heard there was going to be an updated version of the tale, the idea intrigued me. How could anyone possibly update such a popular story without it being, well, stupid? I was determined to find out.

Red Riding Hood begins as a love story: Valerie has been betrothed to a young blacksmith named Henry, but she can't repress her feelings for Peter, a simple woodsman. When she discovers he has feelings for her as well, the two agree to elope so they can always be together. Before they can put their plan into action, however, tragedy strikes: Valerie's sister is murdered by the werewolf that has always terrorized the village. The townspeople begin to panic; the wolf has never attacked anyone living in the village directly before. Terror escalates as a traveling wolf hunter named Solomon confirms the people's worst fears: the killer is one of their own. As the wolf begins to prey on more and more of the villagers, Valerie desperately tries to discover the identity of the creature, before she becomes its next victim.

Rated PG-13 for violence and creature terror and some sensuality, Red Riding Hood is part mystery, part horror, and part romance. And if you suspend some disbelief, it works. The movie constantly keeps you guessing as to the identitty of the wolf: Is it bad boy Peter? Love-struck Henry? Or the elusive grandmother, perhaps? The end is a complete surprise, and won't fail to disappoint. The script keeps everything moving at a brisk pace, with not a dull moment to spare.

The film has an excellent cast, and they all give believable performances. Amanda Seyfried is the best known name, and she delivers an excellent-as-expected performance as the love torn Valerie. Shiloh Fernandez and Max Irons also turn out enjoyable performances as the two men vying for her affections.

For a PG-13 flick, Red Riding Hood is surprisingly clean language-wise. No cursing is heard, which was a nice change. Violence is where it earns its mark: the wolf is vicious and tears apart several people barely off-screen. In probably the biggest gross-out moment of the film, it rips a man's hand off (we see it fall to the ground, bloody). A few people are stabbed, while another is cut open, then sewn back up again (mostly off screen). Other content is minimal, but includes discussion of a wife who has been unfaithful to her husband, and a few suggestive scenes where women begin to disrobe (nothing inappropriate is shown).

Red Riding Hood is one of those few scary movies that I would be comfortable with seeing in theatres again. It has it's violent moments, but it makes up for that by cutting out the profanity, and not having many other content issues. It's fun, exciting, and mysterious, and while it won't be earning any Oscars, it's a pretty thrilling ride.