Rating: 3.5/5
Vanessa (Reese Witherspoon) is on the run.
Her parents were both arrested — her mother, Ramona (Amanda Plummer), for prostitution and her stepfather, Larry, for drugs and child abuse.
Mrs. Sheets, a social worker, tried to take Vanessa. But Vanessa cuffed her to the bed. So, in her red pleather jacket and with all she could carry in a basket, Vanessa escaped in her mother’s car.
Vanessa is going to her grandmother’s house in Stockton, hoping she will take Vanessa in. But before she goes, she’s off to see her boyfriend, Chopper Wood (Bokeem Woodbine).
She better watch out, though. The I-5 Killer is murdering girls her age. So, when her car breaks down, should she trust Bob Wolverton (Kiefer Sutherland) when he comes to offer her help?
The movie interpolates Little Red Riding Hood to explore the variety of ways men prey on women. The wolf can be obvious, a person you intrinsically trust, or the system designed to prosecute them. No one can know if anyone in their life isn’t a wolf.
Reese Witherspoon’s characterization of Vanessa is sharp. She used her authentic Nashville accent. It doesn’t make much sense in the LA setting, but it helps suggest in the audience’s head that Vanessa is “low-class.”
Sutherland’s performance is perfect. I don’t want to say too much.
Oliver Stone read Matthew Bright’s script and helped get it made. As a result, the cast has several noteworthy character actors giving stellar performances. Stone didn’t want to direct the movie, insisting Bright should direct his script.
Danny Elfman did the score in exchange for yard work. Elfman and Bright were childhood friends. The score fucking rules.
The movie had to make several cuts, mostly dialogue, to get an R rating. The MPAA also had problems with the “tone” of the film. Even after the R rating, the film received further censorship. Now, not even Shudder can access the original.
The movie has several prolonged sequences of characterization dialogue. They help establish the relationship between Vanessa and Bob while suggesting the true nature of his interactions with her. The scenes fluctuate between hilarious and disturbing.
There’s also a fair bit of racist dialogue that is uncomfortable in the wrong way. Bright wrote this from his upbringing, for better or worse.
What a wild fucking movie.