Red Riding Hood

It’s hard to believe Catherine Hardwicke is the director who made her debut with Thirteen eight years ago. Since then, she has fostered one nightmare after another, including The Nativity Story, Twilight, and now this, a hilariously bad take on the famous fairy tale. Amanda Seyfried stars as Valerie, a young woman living in a village terrorized by a werewolf. She has a red hood, and a grandma, so she’s essentially Little Red Riding Hood, and the film is essentially a “Who is the wolf?” mystery. The wolf itself is a drab creation, a big dog with no character. Seyfried just drifts along aimlessly in the lead role, while Gary Oldman embarrasses himself as a religious wolf hunter. The film has the look of a painted village one might find in a train set. The costuming is far too bright and clean, and the hair screams, “Today!” rather than, “This is medieval times!” A lame Twilight wannabe from the director of Twilight and the worst film about a little village since, well … The Village.