Red riding hood is a fantasy thriller set in a medieval village that is haunted by a werewolf. Inestead of going down the disney route the 2011 version of this film goes back to the very dark Brothers Grimm tales, throwing in pleanty of twists and the main enigma of who the wolf actually is.
The story starts with the main character Valarie revealing that she is in love with the woodcutter Peter and has been since they were children. She learns however that her parents have aranged for her to marry the wealthier blacksmith Henry Lazar. As Valerie and Peter plan to run away together their plans are put on hold when the wold breaks his truce not to harm the townspeople. Valarie's older sister Lucie, who it transpires was out on a wolf night under the impression she was to meet Henry who she is secretly in love with, is killed by the wolf.
Angered by the break in the truce the local preacher calls in help from a famous witch hunter, Father Solomon. Father Solomon convinces the townspeople to venture to the wolfs lair and kill it so they divide into groups, and Henry's father Adrian is killed moments before they manage to slay the wolf. When Valarie finds her mother mourning Adrians death she learns that Adrian was her mothers first love and Lucie was actually Henry's half sister which is why Valarie had been engaged to him and not Lucie.
The next day when celebrating the death of the wold Father Solomon reveals that had they actually killed the wolf, he would have returned to his human form, instead this was just a common grey wolf. He also tells us the meaning of the blood moon week which is revealed to be the only time of year in which a wolf bite will turn you into a werewolf yourself. No one believes Father Solomon however and that night there are celebrations with pleanty of drink dancing and fun. Valarie find her father passed out on the floor in a pool of vomit and send him home before noticing that her friend is dancing prevocativley with Peter. She too grabs a dance partner and attempts to make Peter jealous. Her fioncee Henry interupts the dancing to argue with Peter about the events of the night his father died and before anything can happen the real werewolf appears.
Everyone flees to the church as the wolf can not step on holy ground but Valarie's friend has lost her little brother Claude so they both go looking for him. The wolf finds them and talks to Valarie communicating telepathically with her, he tells her if she doesn't leave with him, Valarie will be killed, but the wollf is chased away before she gets the chance to make a decision and the wolf vows to be back.
Being that close to the wolf she takes note of the colour of his eyes which only increases her paranoia as every person she meets from then on has the same colour eyes including her Peter, Henry and even her Grandmother.
The next day cClaude is captured after doing a magic trick and is accused of being a student of the dark arts and put into an iron elephant torture chambre to try and reveal the whereabouts of the wolf. To try and save her brother Valarie's friend who witnessed her communicating with the wolf sells out Valarie in return for her brother. By the time the elephant is opened though Claude is already dead. Father solomon believes that Valarie is a witch and captures her to display in the town square to lure the wolf.
To save her Peter and Henry realise they have to set their differences aside and team up. Peter is Captured and put in the elephant while Henry helps Valaire escape. Father Solomon orders Henry to be killed for this crime but the preacher instead who saves Valarie. Henry takes Valarie to the church but they are attacked by the wolf who ends up biting off Father Solomon's hand. They then kill Father Solomon as he did so many others to prevent him turning into a werewolf. The wolf tries to cross to Holy Ground but burns his paw so instead is forced once again to flee.
Valarie has a nightmare that her grandmother is the wolf so goes to check on her but first she retrieves Father Solomons hand as the nails are silver plated and will kill wolf. On her way to her grandmother's house in the woods she is intercepted by Peter who has escaped from the elephant, after noticing the burn on his hand similar to the burn on the wolfs paw, Valarie stabs Peter assuming he's the wolf and rushes to her grandmother's house.
When Valarie arrives at her grandmother's house she learns that her grandmother has been killed by her father after her granmother learnt that he was the wolf. He then explains that the curse was passed to him by his father and he hopes to do the same for Valarie. He explains he killed Lucie after learning that she couldn't communicate with him and therefore wasn't his child, he killed Adrian after learning that he was the affair that fathered Lucie and then he asks Valarie to come away with him.
Peter comes to the rescue (limping a little after being stabbed!) and is tossed to the side and bitten by the wolf. He quickly manages to throw an axe into his back however and while the wolf is distracted Valarie stabs him to death with Father Solomon's hand. Valarie and Peter take the body out to the peir and fill it with rocks and dumps his body into the river so that he can never be found and upon learning that Peter was bitten they spend one last day together before Peter leaves to learn how to control his curse.
The final scene shows Valarie living in her granmother's house in the woods, leaving her old life in the village behind, she's standing outside waiting for something and the film ends with the wolf approaching her.
As a thriller film this could be argued sucsessful or not depending on personal taste. For me baring in mind the key elemets to a thriller are suspense and mystery I found this very sucsessful. I was on the edge of my seat half the time in anticipation of wolf attacks and the mystery of trying to work out who the wolf was kept me interested throughout the film. I certainly never suspected the father. I therefore give this film 4 out of 5 stars.
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