A Good Argument

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Recommended: essay on movie genre and social commentary

What I consider to be one of my favorite films of all time, often leads to many debates with my peers, and questions about my sanity. I have watched so few films in my lifetime that have led to so many great debates as David Slade’s 2005 film Hard Candy. Each time I watch it I’m able to pull more away. One of my favorite things to do is to watch it with others. Considering the controversial subject matter of the film, it’s always shocking to first time viewers. I have however found myself more interested in which character’s side they take. In my opinion this is one of the best modern films to analyze, for its: social commentary, characters, and elements of design.
This movie has led to countless arguments between me and nearly everyone I have asked to watch it. The story of a young girl, who meets a much older man online before going home alone with him, is touchy subject matter. This also typically plays out one way in a person’s head; that is at least before watching the film. After watching however, the perception of what is going on in the film and opinions of the characters is vastly different from what was thought of prior. Hayley is not a typical childish damsel in distress, nor is Jeff a charming nice photographer. The film does a fantastic job of taking your perception of not only what is supposed to be in the norm in society, but also what is supposed to be the norm in a story.
The first time I watched this film I understood some of this, but not to the extent I do today. How could a film have such a split in reception that resulted in actual verbal disagreements by the end of the film? A story typically has an antagonist and a protagonist, as well as a set evil and innocence. This movie does not truly allow you to...

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...goes against the norm. The characters and dialog are so well constructed that it’s easy for the viewer to be lost in who’s right and who’s wrong. An emotional connection is built around characters that are not to be believed or trusted. Both characters do horrible things, and yet it’s easy to jump multiple times between whether or not they are likeable. Lighting helps to takes us into the inner workings of their mind when there are disconnections between the things they say and what they actually believe. The use of the subtlest of ambient noises do more for the film than an entire soundtrack possibly could. If anything be pulled from Hard Candy, it is that you never truly know what you are looking at from the outside. Just like the elements of design in the film, the characters and plot are against the norm, and there is a lot more going on than meets the eye.

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