Red Riding Hood (6/14/2011)

Rated PG-13 for violence and creature terror, and some sensuality.

Starring Amanda Seyfried, Shiloh Fernandez, Julie Christie and Gary Oldman

Directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight and The Nativity Story)

TODD’S WORD: I didn’t really care for this Twilight movie.

JONATHAN’S WORD: Ummmm this wasn’t a Twilight movie.

TODD’S WORD: Are you sure?

JONATHAN’S WORD: Yeah…just the same director and the same daytime soap mentality.

Valerie (Amanda Seyfried) is a beautiful young woman torn between two men. She is in love with a brooding outsider Peter (Shiloh Fernandez), but her parents have arranged for her to marry the wealthy Henry (Max Irons). Unwilling to lose each other, Valerie and Peter are planning to run away together when they learn that Valerie’s older sister has been killed by the werewolf that prowls the dark forest surrounding their village.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Oh sorry…I fell asleep just thinking about the synopsis of this film.

For years, the people have maintained an uneasy truce with the beast, offering the creature a monthly animal sacrifice. But under a blood red moon, the wolf has upped the stakes by taking a human life. Hungry for revenge, the people call on famed werewolf hunter, Father Solomon (Gary Oldman), to help them kill the wolf.

But Solomon’s arrival brings unintended consequences as he warns that the wolf, who takes human form by day, could be any one of them. As the death toll rises with each moon, Valerie begins to suspect that the werewolf could be someone she loves. Panic grips the town as Valerie discovers that she has a unique connection to the beast – one that inexorably draws them together, making her both suspect…and bait.

TODD’S WORD: OK I need to ask this question…Is it wrong to say that every time I saw a close up of Amanda Seyfried, all I could think was, “Oh my, what big eyes you have”?

JONATHAN’S WORD: Ha. That is funny.

TODD’S WORD: OK so can we talk about some of the more ridiculous things in the film?

JONATHAN’S WORD: Like the mediocre special effects?

TODD’S WORD: and Gary Oldman’s silver fingernails, seriously silver fingernails…insert eye roll here.

JONATHAN’S WORD: Or the forced performances?

TODD’S WORD: What about the “join me on the dark side” rip-off?

JONATHAN’S WORD: Or the overall predictability? This film was just lame!

TODD’S WORD: Then there is the overtly sexual symbolism the director Catherine Hardwicke infuses into the film. In one interview she said, “It’s [the cape] always been that powerful symbol. People interpret the blood, the coming of age, getting your period, or just heightened sexuality and sexual power.”

In another interview she says, “In the fairy tale, the wolf represents a dark sexuality – things that maybe the child is not ready to confront yet. In the original fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood, her mother tells her not to go out into the woods alone, not to stray from the path, and to go directly to her grandmother’s house. But she dips into the sensuality of picking flowers and then meets the wolf, which she really wasn’t ready in her development to deal with.”

I was always told that the message of this children’s story is that it can be dangerous to trust strangers. What do you think?

JONATHAN’S WORD: I think Hardwicke has been reading too much Cosmo.

TODD’S WORD: They did everything they could to connect with the teenage audience. From the dysfunctional family and backstabbing friends to good looking “actors” and of course the love triangle. Oh and the reason I said “actors” is because the film makers were obviously more concerned about their looks than their acting ability.

JONATHAN’S WORD: Contrast that with Super 8, a brilliant film. In Super 8 we see very normal looking kids—the kind of kids you actually went to school with—acting the way kids would actually respond in intense situations.

TODD’S WORD: If there is a positive, it’s the set design. I thought the “tree-house” village was pretty cool. Unfortunately, that was the only positive for me.

JONATHAN’S WORD: Yes, I wouldn’t mind vacationing there…as long as Amanda Seyfried wasn’t there.

TODD’S WORD: Besides all the flaws, this movie was just dumb…it’s a “Coaster” for me.

JONATHAN’S WORD: I’ll give it a “Skip It.”

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
Although this isn’t a Twilight movie…it feels like one. A lot of sexual tension, extended looks into each other’s eyes and passionate kissing. I would also say the werewolf violence is pretty intense for younger female viewers (target audience).

Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):

Q: What’s the message/theme of this movie?
A: In the film, the village lives in fear of the Big Bad Wolf. In fact at the end of the film…even when the wolf has been defeated, Valerie says, “The village lived in fear, that was the only life they knew.”

Q: How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
A: We have all experienced fear and worry, but we do not need to fear or worry about our enemy…however we do need to be careful.

Read 1 Peter 5:8-10

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. (NLT)

So what do you think it means to “stay alert”?

In the movie they used fire and guard towers to warn the village if and when the wolf was coming. What warning signs do you have in your life?

Q: How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
A: So what are some practical things we can do to stand firm, and be strong in our faith?

There are a few things you can do this week:

• We need to connect with other believers… i.e. get plugged into a church/youth group.
• Get into God’s Word as much as possible. Even if you start by reading one verse a day or listening to the “Lil Bit Podcast”
• Finally, pray.

Dare to have godly courage. Keep your focus on the Lord and pretty soon you will have more strength than you thought possible. You are special and important to God. After all you are His child!

You are loved by God…far more than you will ever realize.