Case study of Hard Candy (2005) by David Slade

As I previously mentioned the film Hard Candy I thought it may be an interesting film to look at as it classed as a psychological thriller and it is extremely different to anyother film I have seen. Hard Candy won 5 awards and was nominated for 6. It is a film about a mature fourteen year old girl who meets a thirty two year old photographer on the internet.Suspecting that he is a pedophile, she goes back to his house in an attempt to expose him, however at the beginning the audience are unaware of this.

Definition of a psychological thriller according to Wikipedia

"Characters are no longer reliant on physical strength to overcome their brutish enemies (which is often the case in typical action-thrillers), but rather are reliant on their mental resources, whether it be by battling wits with a formidable opponent or by battling for equilibrium in the character's own mind. The suspense created by psychological thrillers often comes from two or more characters preying upon one another's minds, either by playing deceptive games with the other or by merely trying to demolish the other's mental state."

This is a BBC film review by Stelle papamichael.

"Hard Candy is anything but sweet, following a 14-year-old girl as she torments a suspected paedophile in his own home. It’s a striking big screen debut for indie filmmaker David Slade whose crisp direction provides a great showcase for the fearless acting of Patrick Wilson (The Phantom Of The Opera) and the precocious Ellen Page. Together they pull off an extraordinary balancing act - a film that will have you both squirming in your seat and teetering on the edge of it.

   ...This is definitely a visceral rather than intellectual take on the subject of paedophilia, yet there is also an underpinning delicacy about the way the confrontations build and the measured approach of the actors. The final scene is a little disappointing, as it feels overly contrived, but Hard Candy lingers nonetheless."

What makes Hard Candy a thriller?

-Use of characters
-Use of isolated location
-A mixture of muted colours, bright lights and low key lighting
- Use of diegetic sound

Analysis of Hard Candy and how David Slade uses aspects of the thriller genre

Slade uses large amount of thriller aspects within Hard Candy, of which I shall be interpreting and exploring in this short analysis. 

   This first scene is a close up of what we assume to be a computer screen; we see the conversation between "thonggrrrl14" and "lensman319" on an instant messaging site/programme. The use of names is instantly provoking, we question why has “thonggrrrl14” used such an alluring name and whether the number 14 is a reference to her age. This leaves the audience thinking that if 14 is her age then she surely is too young to be talking in such a way. Slade has used completely diegetic sounds including the tapping of the keyboard and a low humming which we can only assume is the humming of the computer, these sounds add both realism and intensity. When the conversation becomes more provocative “you oughta film me with that camera” the camera cuts to an extreme close up of the screen anticipating the reply. This scene is extremely tense and mysterious scene as we are unable to indentify who the characters are, how old they are and how long they have known each other etc, which is highly unsettling. This could be Slade’s reflection of internet dating, we are forced to anticipate people, be trusting and make presumptions, which later in the film we realise isn’t always a good thing.

          In the next scene the two characters arrange to meet at "Nighthawks Diner". Nighthawks is the name of an Edward Hopper painting, painted in 1942. It is a painting of a couple, a man and a waiter at a bar and was considered a portrayal of modern unban life as being lonely and empty. If you look at the painting there is no visible leading outside and the waiter appears to be trapped within the serving area; these points all indicate a feeling of confinement and entrapment which is essentially what the film Hard Candy plays upon. The link indicates Slades appreciation of Hopper, and almost foreshadows the entrapment the characters will feel later within the film. For example although Slades use of characters isn't exactly generic, the way he has chosen to use and manipulate them creates a thriller-like effect, Slade has only used four obvious characters which creates obvious isolation and could be a reference to the four characters in the picture.

The audience then sees a black screen until it cuts to a close up of a chocolate cake and we see a young girl slowly slicing the cake and almost suggestivley eating it. She makes noises of enjoyment as she is eating the cake and is left with chocolate on her lips, in this case the noises and chocolate are considered progotative and sexual, the camera zooms a close up of Jeffs face as he looks at Hayley in awe implying to the audience that he is infact a predator. This gives a very strong representation of woman as being highly sexually provacative however as she as we are not aware whether she is intentionally doing so this has been done to make the audience question society on age and sexuality, to create a contraversy and to also create an uncomfortable effect.

       Slade uses mostly backlight and flood light; the backlight is mostly used when looking at hayley (the young girl) indicating she angelic and innocent- which is used to trick the audience as we later find out, the flood light is mostly used to connotate realism, to imply this could happen to anybody. This still photograph of the film supports this as Hayley is seen as almost luminous. In this scene the camera is mostly used for close ups, extreme close ups and mid close ups, this is to show the tense relationship; although they not physically close to each other we can tell that they are interested as the camera is placed as though we are the characters. Hayleys skin is pale and contrasts with the redness of her lips drawing the audiences attention to her lips which again indicates ideas of sex.

           In some way, Hayley could be considered as a slight femme fatale- a generic thriller character; due to her strength and power and her unconventional sexual appeal. At the beginning of the film Hayley is wearing red hooded jumper; an obvious connotation to danger which also could be a reference to Brother Grimms fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood". However she is a femme fatale with a twist as she also uses her psychological strength, we as the audience are fooled into thinking she is a vunerable almost pathetic character like other woman characters in thriller films via light techniques and psychological games she plays which Slade puts through via the script.

This is a still of the film at 01:35:49, showing Hayley convincing Jeff to commit suicide (supporting the femme fatale point) and showing highly generic thriller aspects. This demonstrates the isolated and seculsion location, we are unable to see any nearby roads, houses or any civilisation. Due to the lighting the characters have become distorted silhouttes creating a highly mysterious and uncomfortable feel for the audience. At this point the film has been put into slow motion whilst Hayley watches him jump which makes the audience anticipate his death. Unlike other femme fatales Hayley gets away, she climbs down a hill in her red hood with a smile upon her face- which again could be a reference to the last line of Little Red Riding Hood "Red Riding Hood went joyously home, and no one ever did anything to harm her again. "