Before I went in to see Hard Candy I was warned by a couple of guys that I was chatting with that the film would ruin my night. It's too intense, too in your face, too . . . awful. Since it was either this film or a depressing documentary on the deplorable state of the environment starring Al Gore called An Inconvenient Truth, I opted for awful, in my face intensity.

As Hard Candy begins we are tight on a chat room conversation going on between two individuals her are allegedly a 14 year old girl and a 32 year old man. Reluctantly the young girl agrees to meet the man at a cafe and after a bit of lively banter in which both are equally charmed and impressed by the other, Hayley (Ellen Page) finds herself in the well appointed apartment of the 32 year old fashion photographer Jeff (Patrick Wilson). A veteran stage actor Wilson took on a particularly tough role as a married Mormon homosexual in Angels in America. Page is indeed a revelation playing the bright and perky prey of what we assume is a pedifile who's managed to lure the perfect victim into his web. Page has the wide-eyed wholesome look of a young Ally Sheedy with the coy mystery of Natalie Portman in Beautiful Girls.

As Hayley explores Jeff's place she becomes interested in his studio as well as some of his sexy subjects who appear in provocative poses. After a few drinks, Hayley has become emboldened enough to suggest that Jeff take a few shots of her just for fun. Just as she starts to get playful with her poses, rending her tight sports top and egging him on, Jeff begins to feel strange and is soon unconscious. When he awakes he is tied firmly to a chair and is soon being frankly interrogated by his young guest who believes him to be a pedifile and possibly a murderer.

Jeff is still reeling from the effects of the tranquilizer and is too thick-tongued to mount much of a defense. For her part Hayley seems to know every detail about Jeff's life, former girlfriends and an acquaintance with a young girl who'd gone missing. Though he seems to have ready and credible alibis for all of her accusations, she maintains a smug position of power, both because she has the drop on him and appears to know things about him that have him visibly shaken.

Hard Candy is for all intents and purposes a two-person character study that would probably work quite well as a play. Director David Slade never lets your interest wane, by keeping the action close and intimate with tight head shots and by establishing Hayley as a loose cannon of an avenging lioness capable of inflicting torture both physical and emotional on her helpless captive. She's studied this scenario down to every last detail - aware, for example that his screams will go unheard as his only close neighbors are out of town. After an unsuccessful hunt for the child porn or perhaps evidence of his involvement with the missing young girl she leaves him alone to do a thorough search and by sheer will power and brute strength manages to pull a hand loose from it's binding and untie the other. Still tied as he is to a rolling chair, he manages to get his hands on his pistol.

At this point the film becomes something of a cat and mouse affair, but Hayley always seems to be one step ahead and once again subdues her captive. This time when he awakens he is bound to a table in a posture that suggests the likelihood of torture. Throughout, Hayley stays in character as the playful matter-of-fact kid, precocious and hell bent on avenging all those who may or may not have suffered at his hand. Right away it becomes clear that she intends to castrate her hysterical prisoner and sets about doing so with a humorous play by play. She even sets up one of his video cameras so he can watch every gruesome detail of the procedure.

Through all this Jeff tries any number of ploys to extricate himself from the nightmare. He offers her money, offers to confess to anything she pleases and when these measures fail, he attempts psychological warfare - all of which Hayley seems to have anticipated and has prepared responses for. Slade does a nice job of allowing the tension to build by degree and never allowing the proceedings to become far-fetched or implausible. As a humane measure she applies a bag of ice to his crotch to mitigate the pain of her barbaric designs. I'll leave you to wonder whether or not Hayley carries out the castration - I'm a professional damnit and I'm not about to play the spoiler when it comes to a do it yourself home castration.

There are plenty more twists and strange turns as we work our way to a most bizarre conclusion, but I will say that during the final act that both writer and director let the picture get away from them to some extent. Too many of the things that happen toward the finale lose their credibility by being to contrived and implausible. Still Hard Candy is a fascinating and most unexpected film that remains suspenseful and daring throughout - though the last 15 minutes require way too much suspension of disbelief, it's not enough to lessen the visceral punch that this film packs. From the word go Hard Candy will have you in it's grasp and that's enough to give it a great big recommendation.

Adam's Take

Hard Candy played the Sundance Film Festival a couple of years back, but due to a hectic schedule, I was unable to take in a screening. About a month ago, I got a look at the trailer and I was instantly compelled.

As Hard Candy opens, we're introduced to Hayley Stark (a mesmerizing Ellen Page). She's your average, every day precocious young teenager. More than anything, she just wants to be noticed. After a brief courtship with a gentleman on line, she decides that she wants to meet the guy in person. This is a dangerous proposition to be sure, and anyone will tell you, that this sort of thing will usually lead to disaster.

That would be in another movie, for Hard Candy is freakishly deceptive. Lets just say that in this picture, the hunter is the hunted.

Ellen Page is a revelation as fourteen year old Hayley Stark, and after doing some research, I discovered that this terrific actress is actually eighteen. Regardless of her age, she gives a compelling performance as a young woman on a mission. Likewise, Patrick Wilson (Angels in America) is equally effective as a man in his thirties who harbors many disturbing secrets. As a team, Page and Wilson play off each other in expert fashion recalling a similar bond that James Caan and Kathy Bates shared in Misery.

Hard Candy is frightening and gruesome, but it isn't in a gore fest like Saw. If anything, Hard Candy is sort of the anti-Saw. It's extremely talkie, and much of it felt like a David Mamet play (think Oleanna).

I don't want to give a false impression here. Hard Candy is gripping and even brutal in it's approach. The film contains, among all things, a castration sequence that is so nauseating and so gut wrenching, that I actually reached for my own testicles to make sure they were still in tact. What sets this film apart from the likes of Saw (aside from great acting I mean) is a lack of blood. There is very little to speak of. Hard Candy is more about conversation and imagination.

What's more, Hard Candy has a sense of humor. Albeit a wicked sense of humor. Watch Page spew playful but serious verbal attacks at everything from European retro musical outfit Goldfrapp to legendary film maker Roman Polanski..

Technically, Hard Candy is an absolute marvel. Shot in digital, the film has the same kind of look as Michael Mann's Collateral. Skilled cinematographer Jo Willems does an expert job of teasing the audience. Just as he leads us to believe he's going to deliver the money shot with his lens, he slyly pulls the camera away opting to show us expressions of horror on the characters faces. Credit gifted director David Slade for delivering the power of suggestion in a big way. He truly believes what we don't see is far more powerful than what we do see, and this particular theory works perfect in this film.

Unfortunately, Hard Candy doesn't come up all roses. The final act is incredibly implausible. From the moment Sandra Oh appears on screen, the movie takes a detour into "bullshitland." Quickly, I began questioning how a certain character was so perfectly able to anticipate another character's every move. What's more, the traps set are a little too elaborate and unrealistic. Similar problems plagued David Fincher's entertaining but far fetched The Game.

Still, the first three quarters of Hard Candy are extremely effective. This a truly intense film experience with explosive performances and smart writing. I guess you might consider this a cautionary tale. Pedophiles best beware. The hero in Hard Candy means business.

Grade: B