Red Riding Hood is a 2011 American romantic horror film directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, from a screenplay by David Leslie Johnson. The film is very loosely based on the folk tale Little Red Riding Hood collected by both Charles Perrault under the name Le Petit Chaperon Rouge (Little Red Riding Hood) and several decades later by the Brothers Grimm as Rotkäppchen (Little Red Cap). It stars Amanda Seyfried as the title role, with Gary Oldman, Billy Burke, Shiloh Fernandez, Max Irons, Virginia Madsen, Lukas Haas and Julie Christie in supporting roles.
Red Riding Hood had its world premiere at Hollywood on March 7, 2011 and was theatrically released on March 11, 2011, by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received generally negative reviews from critics, with praise for Seyfried's performance but criticism for its plot. It grossed over $89 million worldwide against a $42 million budget.
Plot[]
Valerie lives with her parents, Cesaire and Suzette, and older sister Lucie in the village of Daggerhorn, on the edge of a forest plagued by a werewolf. She is in love with the woodcutter and childhood friend Peter, but her parents arrange for her to marry Henry, son of the wealthy blacksmith Adrien Lazar. Valerie and Peter plan to elope, only to learn the Wolf has broken its truce not to prey on the townspeople and murdered Lucie.
Suzette tells Valerie that her marriage was also arranged and that she had loved another. The preacher Father Auguste calls upon the famous witch hunter Father Solomon for help, but the townspeople decide to venture into the Wolf's lair. Peter is separated from the group moments before the Wolf kills Adrien. The Wolf is cornered by the men and killed. Valerie finds Suzette mourning Adrien and deduces that he was her true love. She learns from her mother that Lucie, who was originally supposed to be engaged to Henry was actually his half-sister. As a result, Valerie became the next one in line.
As the village celebrates the end of the Wolf, Father Solomon arrives and declares that the slain animal is a common grey wolf, as the true werewolf would have reverted to human form, as he discovered for himself when he killed a Wolf that turned out to be his wife. He reveals they have entered Blood Moon Week, an event every thirteen years wherein anyone bitten by the Wolf is cursed to become one. Father Solomon's men, led by The Captain (Adrian Holmes), isolate Daggerhorn and investigate the villagers to find out the Wolf's identity. That night, the Wolf attacks, and the townspeople shelter in the church while Valerie and her friend Roxanne search for Roxanne's autistic brother, Claude. Cornered by the beast, Valerie discovers she is able to understand the Wolf, who threatens to kill Roxanne and destroy the village if Valerie does not leave with it. The Wolf escapes, vowing to return for Valerie's decision.
The next day, Claude is captured by Father Solomon's men. Father Solomon declares Claude, whom he witnessed perform a trick, a student of the dark arts; when the frightened Claude cannot reveal the Wolf's identity, Father Solomon locks him in an iron elephant. In exchange for Claude's release, Roxanne reveals that Valerie is able to communicate with the Wolf, but realizes too late that her brother is already dead. Believing Valerie is a witch, Father Solomon displays her in the town square to lure the Wolf. Henry and Peter help Valerie escape; Peter is captured by the Captain and is thrown in the elephant, while Father Solomon orders Henry's execution. Father Auguste saves Henry, before being killed by Father Solomon.
Henry brings Valerie to the church, where they are attacked by the Wolf, who bites off Father Solomon's hand with silver-coated fingernails. The villagers shield Valerie from the Wolf, who is again forced to flee after burning its right paw on the church's holy ground. Due to the curse, the Captain has no choice but to kill Father Solomon.
Valerie then later dreams that the Wolf is her grandmother, and rushes to her nearby cabin. Finding Father Solomon's hand on the way, Valerie meets Peter, wearing a glove on his right hand. Assuming he is the wolf, she stabs him. At the cabin, Valerie finds her grandmother dead and discovers that her father, Cesaire, is the Wolf. He reveals the curse was passed to him by his own father, and he intended to leave the village with his children. He tried to pass the werewolf “gift” to Lucie, but realizing he was not her father, murdered her in a fit of rage, and took revenge against Adrien. He asks Valerie to accept the curse, but she refuses. Peter appears, and Cesaire bites him and throws him aside. Peter throws an axe into Cesaire's back, allowing Valerie to kill her father with Father Solomon's hand. Peter realizes he'll become a werewolf and runs off, Valerie follows and they embrace. Valerie and Peter fill Cesaire's body with rocks and dump him in the lake in order to protect the secret from the villagers. Peter departs, vowing to return when he has learned to control the curse. Valerie says she'll wait for him.
About a year has passed, and Henry joins the Captain's monster hunters. Suzette accepts the loss of her husband, and the village continues to live in fear. With the secret she now bears, Valerie decides to move to her grandmother's house, leaving her old life behind. During a full moon, Peter returns in wolf form as Valerie smiles.