Hoodwinked (U)

An amusing film showing the story of Little Red Riding Hood in different views. Good comedy in parts with good human and animal characters but you are able to tell that the film was low budget. I did watch the whole film and found it amusing in parts. I would recommend watching this film.

It was the first time my four year old has ever sat and watched a film all the way through at a cinema, so she gives Hoodwinked the absolute thumbs up. It is a great film for adults too!

In spite of the low budget that generated low graphics, the movie has some interesting and funny animal and human characters. To be honest, I didn't think the movie would be such a cheerful one, but I couldn't stop laughing, and laughing and laughing through the entire movie. I laughed so hard I was practically crying. If you look past the image, Hoodwinked is a pretty funny movie that will really make you laugh. I know some may call it cheesy, but it's one of the funniest cheesy movies of the year.

There's no original story here I admit. It's simply the tale of Little Red Riding Hood told by several characters, each having their own version of the story. Hoodwinked is told mostly in flashback, through Police interrogation, to the events leading up to Red discovering the Wolf in Grandma's bed. But the story is unlike anything you have heard before.

It's not a story for children only. It's a clever and funny parody for all ages. Yes, the animation is not the greatest, but the characters (my favourite is the squirrel high on coffee) and the idea behind the movie are. It's a feel good movie, so be sure to rent it!

Billed as the funniest film since Shrek, Hoodwinked had a lot to live up to. It tries to tell the real story to Little Red Riding Hood, through the eyes of each of the characters.

The film starts with the original tale and when 'Red' (Anne Hathaway) discovers the big bad wolf in place of her grandmother (Glenn Close) and the wood cutter (Jim Belushi) comes in to save her, the police are called. The police start their investigation of what happened and linking this disturbance to the recipe bandit. By questioning each of the characters they go through all the stories in a bid to discover the truth.

It seems they all have a story to tell, however the viewer feels they are reliving groundhog day over and over again as each character relives their day. Needless to say after this long drawn out process they finally solve the crime.

Although a lot of thought has been put into the idea of the film, the acting and animation also hit the mark. It just feels to long and boring, I really think the script could be better and perhaps a few laughs could of made it more bearable.

I suppose the final words has to go to the kids and though my 4 year old said it was good my soon to be 7 year old could only muster a 'it was OK ' but saying that he did spend the second half of the film on the computer.

Recommendations, wait till it is in the DVD bargain bin with a tale like this you will thank me in the long run.