Red Riding Hood

In a fogbound village surrounded by a dark forest, Valerie is torn between an arranged marriage her parents expect and a secret love with Peter, an outsider with a troubled reputation. They plan to escape together, but when Valerie's older sister is killed by a werewolf, the town descends into fear and suspicion. As hunters prowl the trees and neighbors turn on one another, Valerie discovers she shares an uncanny bond with the creature, a connection that makes her both a suspect and an irresistible lure. Loyalties fray, gossip spreads, and the search for the killer becomes as much about protecting social order as it is about finding the beast. The film keeps its central mystery intact, avoiding spoilers here.

Released in 2011, Red Riding Hood was directed by Catherine Hardwicke and developed from a screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, taking inspiration from the fairy tale. The film stars Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Billy Burke, Shiloh Fernandez and Max Irons.

Critics and audiences gave the film mixed reactions, and its commercial performance reflected that. It opened wide and drew viewers for its gothic romance elements, delivering moderate box office returns rather than the runaway success studios expect from YA fantasy.

Though not a blockbuster, the movie fed a trend for dark, romantic reworkings of fairy tales in early 2010s cinema, and it drew frequent comparisons to other YA supernatural properties. Its imagery, especially the red hood and the misty forest, stuck in conversation about gothic teen horror and online fandom.

Critics were divided; some applauded Seyfried's performance and the film's moody visuals, while others criticized its pacing and script. The movie turns on themes of forbidden love, fear of the unknown, scapegoating and the burden of social expectation, favoring atmosphere and romantic tension over procedural clarity and underdeveloped character arcs.