Red Riding Hood (2006)

if there is any one thing that those of us that have seen this movie can agree on it's that we are all not N'SYNC with this whole thing. seems like you either like it or hate it or are perplexed by it.is it any good? well, actually i'm a little confused about this one. i happen to like the film very much and think it's surprisingly well done for what it is and it's ambitions(which are few)are. it's also at least likable enough not to deserve the critical skewering it usually gets. i think people are a little "put off" by this movie because the end result is unintentionally bizarre and way over the top. i think the film wants to be amusing and quaint, but it far exceeds that to the point the viewer feels as if they are being "punked" by this. of course not. it's just that fey and crazy weird. i mean what show in it's right mind lets Debi Mazar do her own singing? the result is predictably ear piercing. ouch. Debi Mazar is a really good actress, just not a good singer.also Joey "the fat one" Fatone is disturbingly over the top here as well, and a very strange presence. remember Fatone? he was the fat kid in the baby band N'Sync who was always back up and never a front guy. it's not that Fatone is'nt good. as a matter of fact he's slickly professional and sings and dances well and is very funny. what's the problem? Joey Fatone is way too young of a performer to seem like such a has-been, washed out, Las Vegas, Wayne Newton type. i mean the guy has just barely turned the big three zero and he's already ready for a has-been appearance on the 'Surreal Life'. his performance here is likable and engaging, but it feels so Las Vegas and so Wayne Newton. something too over-the-hill for someone this young. i doubt Fatone will ever enjoy the respectability that N'Sync buddy Justin Timberlake is enjoying now as a serious actor.the two best performers are the girl portraying 'Red' herself, and Lanie Kazan, who is delightfully ditzy as the yoga loving, hippie, liberal grandmother. Kazan sings and moves just great and reminds us that there is life for the geriatric set. there are also some funny performances by the girls who play the uber cool Ashley's. the Ashley's are a hilarious, tough, hybrid of 'hello kitty' and the 'Avenue 13' gang.despite a ridiculous 'PG' rating, everything here is 'G' rated and wholesome for all ages. the only thing that parents should be strongly cautioned about is the age inappropriate love interest for Red Riding Hood. it's age inappropriate because, hello, the little girl is only thirteen where the boy is at least eighteen or nineteen. that's an age difference that's bound to make any uptight father of a tween girl cringe.i'm not going to pretend this movie is great cinema. but it is a musical and a fairy tale, two things i absolutely love. it's an unintentionally strange film (probably due to it's being a musical), but i think it's fun and it was directed by Hollywood pro Randal Kleiser who always turns in a polished looking production even when the material is kind of junk. which, as much as i like this, this is.

I watched this as preparation for the Tim Burton "Alice in Wonderland." That and "Riding Hood" are surely among the most stretched, adapted and versioned stories ever told. Red is particularly interesting because the versions all contain the same elements: girl, wolf, grandma, hunter. Woods.But it ranges from political allegory to sexual allusion. The background is so rich that almost any version is fun.This one is particular fun. I would recommend it. Some commentors think the sexual overtones are inappropriate. Well, phooey. Any youngster that gets that can benefit from the way it is handled. Lighthouse? Weenie roast? Over-sized Musket? "Fill out" so she can be tastier? Hey, you should have seen the last red Riding Hood I saw: the very clever porn version.Other commentors are offended by the flamboyant staging and effects. Gosh, though it has a metallic aftertaste, I loved it. Every effect was deliberately shown to be an effect within a story.The framing is that Lainie Kazan plays a grandmother who reads the story featuring her two grandkids — one of whom is Red. The wolf is a werewolf who can assume the appearance of his victims. There is the sort of dumb moralizing that is required in kiddie fare, but it is mixed in with a hodge podge of parallel lessons and jokes. The werewolf develops a split personality, making it possible for every character to have two identities. Film enthusiasts will know Lainie, who created a key role in introspective film in "My Favorite Year." She has grown into a stereotypical Jewish grandmother, of the sort maintained on stage. She has that character here, and it adds a welcome tone. But she really is the weakest element: every time she is on screen, we cannot wait for het to get off.See it. I expect it will be no more scrambled, excessive, stereotypical and sexual than Burton's Alice.Red's cloak/hood is often a dramatic character itself. Red, her mother and her grandmother are all redheads.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

This movie, obviously, is not a Hollywood blockbuster, and its target audience is kids, so it should be judged accordingly. That said, my daughters, ages 6 and 8, are absolutely delighted by this movie, and when I finally gave in to their insistent pleas that I watch it with them, I could see why. It's obvious that it must have been one of the most fun movies ever to make. It's nothing but silly, but it's loads of fun. All the actors, including the kids, have a great time with their parts, and ham it up at every opportunity. The gags surrounding the juxtaposition between modern life and the classic tale of Red Riding Hood fly by so quickly that before you are finished appreciating one, you've missed two or three more. Joey Fatone is hilarious, and should have won an Oscar for his complete transformation between two simultaneous roles. Anyone who rates this movie poorly didn't watch it with an 8-year-old. Disclaimer: I loved "The Wizard of Speed and Time."

Creepy & lascivious wolf. The young "Red" is wearing full make-up, and extremely short shorts & robe. Got about 20 minutes through and realized it could be a pedophile's dream come true. The "up-beat" music sounds a lot like something I'd hear at a strip club. I actually think this movie is a sick joke - it's not a family movie. Gross, glad I was watching this with my daughter, I don't want her to think it's normal for families to view quasi kiddie porn together. Very bad, Very sad it's sold as a family film, Joey Fatone will probably be embarrassed he was in it. And what's with advertising it as a "special effects spectacular"??? The effects do look low budget, gawd awful.