Candyman
(Dir: Bernard Rose, 1992) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103919/
Reviewed by: Whitney
Candyman, Candyman, Candyman, Candyman, Candyman. I'm waiting.... still waiting... All right, I must say, this movie used to scare the crap out of me. Seriously. I don't think I ever even, okay, maybe once, played Bloody Marry as a child. There is something about summoning evil that I was fearful of as a kid. Not so much now. Now, it's Ouija boards and seances, and prancing, albeit, respectfully, through cemeteries at night. I'm just not as fearful anymore, and that probably accounts for why movies like Candyman just do not hold up as well for me as an adult.
The movie starts out a bit slow, other than the initial scare that takes place with in the first five minutes of any horror film. The movie starts off chronicling the urban legend of the Candyman who, as legend has it, was the son of a former slave who was murdered by towns folk after having and affair with and getting a white woman pregnant. The woman's father hired men to take the Candyman, saw off his arm, and smash hives of bees around his body, which was covered in honey, leaving him to be stung and eaten to death. He allegedly haunted a seedy, skid-rowish neighborhood, attacking and murdering those who dared say his name five times into a mirror.
Well, wouldn't you know it, lil; miss investigator decides one night to f*ck with the Candyman, for research, of course, by testing out the legend herself in her own bathroom. Of course, because she summoned him in her wealthier, high class neighborhood, nothing happens... right away, but once she starts meddling in his hood and starts to spread word that Candyman doesn't exist to the locals, that pisses him off and he decides to use her in a plot of revenge to gain support in his existence again.
Unfortunately, the final body count is low for a movie like this. I think the legend, at least as a kid, lingers, but the film really doesn't hold up as well. There isn't enough gore and bodies to push it into the shocker category. At the same time, there isn't quite enough suspenseful moments to make it overly thrilling, as an adult, either.
Another thing that bothers me about this film is the lead female. She's a weird Sharon Stone knock off who seems to have Hallmark Channel moments, not horror film moments. Or maybe, she is better meant for some sort of Pantine commercial. The movie feels dated, and not in a retro, vintagey way that works for classic horror films. I also don't like that it is a horror movie that is racially driven in motives, in some sense, but still manages to depict the "ghetto" in the most stereotypically racist way possible. It misses the mark there. The end is a bit overblown in the "moral of the story" department, but the last thrill, though entirely expected, makes the movie slightly more enjoyable.
Other things that I do not like about this movie: her boobs have too much plasticity and look awkward. Also, she takes a bath in some sort of milky substance at one point, and for whatever reason that creeped me out more than most of the "scary" parts. One other thing; A hook for an arm? Really? Thatttttt's pretty overdone, like my mother's turkey on Thanksgiving Day. Actually, I don't eat meat and my mom isn't a terrible cook.
Oooh, I did like all of the bees. Insects always give me the creepy-crawlies. Anytime insects come out of body cavities, the creepy level of a movie raises significantly for me.
Overall, I'd recommend this movie if you are 10 and need to be scared for a couple of years via urban legends, and trust me, all 10 year-olds need to be scared a bit. It makes parenting a lot easier if you can just threaten to summon the Candyman. Of course, this is coming from someone who has no children. However, I have experienced this for myself via a father who was really into making his kids watch scary movies. I think it helped make me a better adult.
Rating: 5/10
Scare Scale: Teen Scream
Unfortunately, the final body count is low for a movie like this. I think the legend, at least as a kid, lingers, but the film really doesn't hold up as well. There isn't enough gore and bodies to push it into the shocker category. At the same time, there isn't quite enough suspenseful moments to make it overly thrilling, as an adult, either.
Another thing that bothers me about this film is the lead female. She's a weird Sharon Stone knock off who seems to have Hallmark Channel moments, not horror film moments. Or maybe, she is better meant for some sort of Pantine commercial. The movie feels dated, and not in a retro, vintagey way that works for classic horror films. I also don't like that it is a horror movie that is racially driven in motives, in some sense, but still manages to depict the "ghetto" in the most stereotypically racist way possible. It misses the mark there. The end is a bit overblown in the "moral of the story" department, but the last thrill, though entirely expected, makes the movie slightly more enjoyable.
Other things that I do not like about this movie: her boobs have too much plasticity and look awkward. Also, she takes a bath in some sort of milky substance at one point, and for whatever reason that creeped me out more than most of the "scary" parts. One other thing; A hook for an arm? Really? Thatttttt's pretty overdone, like my mother's turkey on Thanksgiving Day. Actually, I don't eat meat and my mom isn't a terrible cook.
Oooh, I did like all of the bees. Insects always give me the creepy-crawlies. Anytime insects come out of body cavities, the creepy level of a movie raises significantly for me.
Overall, I'd recommend this movie if you are 10 and need to be scared for a couple of years via urban legends, and trust me, all 10 year-olds need to be scared a bit. It makes parenting a lot easier if you can just threaten to summon the Candyman. Of course, this is coming from someone who has no children. However, I have experienced this for myself via a father who was really into making his kids watch scary movies. I think it helped make me a better adult.
Rating: 5/10
Scare Scale: Teen Scream
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