I watched this as preparation for the Tim Burton "Alice in Wonderland." That and "Riding Hood" are surely among the most stretched, adapted and versioned stories ever told. Red is particularly interesting because the versions all contain the same elements: girl, wolf, grandma, hunter. Woods.
But it ranges from political allegory to sexual allusion. The background is so rich that almost any version is fun.
This one is particular fun. I would recommend it.
Some commentors think the sexual overtones are inappropriate. Well, phooey. Any youngster that gets that can benefit from the way it is handled. Lighthouse? Weenie roast? Over-sized Musket? "Fill out" so she can be tastier? Hey, you should have seen the last red Riding Hood I saw: the very clever porn version.
Other commentors are offended by the flamboyant staging and effects. Gosh, though it has a metallic aftertaste, I loved it. Every effect was deliberately shown to be an effect within a story.
The framing is that Lainie Kazan plays a grandmother who reads the story featuring her two grandkids — one of whom is Red. The wolf is a werewolf who can assume the appearance of his victims. There is the sort of dumb moralizing that is required in kiddie fare, but it is mixed in with a hodge podge of parallel lessons and jokes. The werewolf develops a split personality, making it possible for every character to have two identities.
Film enthusiasts will know Lainie, who created a key role in introspective film in "My Favorite Year." She has grown into a stereotypical Jewish grandmother, of the sort maintained on stage. She has that character here, and it adds a welcome tone. But she really is the weakest element: every time she is on screen, we cannot wait for het to get off.
See it. I expect it will be no more scrambled, excessive, stereotypical and sexual than Burton's Alice.
Red's cloak/hood is often a dramatic character itself. Red, her mother and her grandmother are all redheads.
Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.
