Catherine Hardwicke Releases Trailer for “Red Riding Hood” Starring Amanda Seyfried

Catherine Hardwicke releases trailer for “Red Riding Hood” starring Amanda Seyfried

Movie News

By our guest blogger, Daphne Hernandez

Catherine Harwicke, the record breaking “Twilight” director released the visually tantalizing teaser trailer for her latest project “Red Riding Hood,” her first film since helming the box office mega-hit “Twilight.”

“Red Riding Hood” plucks Hardwicke out of the dark and dreary forests plagued by vampires and drops her in a dark and dreary forest plagued by….werewolves.

At least she’s stretching herself.

The film differs from the story we all grew up with about a little girl who visits her grandmother and finds a cross-dressing wolf in her place. In Hardwicke’s re-imagining, Valerie (Amanda Seyfried as the titular character) is torn between two lovers, an orphaned woodcutter and the well-to-do boy her parents arrange for her to marry. Just as she decides whom she’s running off into the sunset with, the werewolf that terrorizes the woods kills Valerie’s sister and insights a panic among the villagers. They bring in a werewolf expert, played by Gary Oldman (I know, I was surprised too), who drops the bomb that the wolf is human by day and lives among them. Cue fear mongering and torch wielding mobs.

Seyfried (“Mamma Mia”) described Hardwicke’s film as “edgy, gothic and dark” and recently spoke on what audiences can expect. “Fans will be surprised by the tone of the film,” she offers. “Catherine just completely throws it into this dark world, and it’s a little scarier than it was meant to be when it was written. We had this freedom to go far with it so whatever preconceptions the audience has, they should throw it out the door.”

The cast also includes Lukas Haas, Virginia Madsen and famed movie legend Julie Christie as Red’s Grandmother.

“Red Riding Hood” will hit theaters in March 2011.

View the trailer below. Thoughts?