Review: Candyman (1992)

Stars: Tony Todd, Virginia Madsen

Budget: $8-9 million

Directed By: Bernard Rose

With the release of the new film coming soon, also despite me getting some leaks from a source that, to me at least don't sound to great, i'll be reviewing all the movies now.

Weird how I haven't done these before as I am as you know an addict of franchise movies. This movie stars the totally awesome Tony Todd who knocks the ball out of the park in his role as the Candyman.
One thing I am not totally in love with in this movie is the way it goes about things. Candyman is a wronged man for sure, but he also exists because people fear and believe in him.
He has to basically kill anyone who doesn't believe in him by calling through the mirror and name 5 times thing. This perpetuates his legend, except with Virginia's character he actually falls in love with her.

Lets get on with the actual film and if it's any good, we join Helen (Madsen) who with her friend Bernadette are writing a thesis on urban legends, if they are real or just perpetuated by people for the use of fear mechanics.
Hearing of Candyman when some girl is murdered in a project high rise tower, Helen and Bernadette go investigate talking to two cleaners who tell her about the myth.
Helen isn't a real believer of the myth of Candyman when she hears about it, even after linking a further 25 kills to his name. The Candyman himself was a black man killed because he fell in love with some rich persons daughter. He had his hand cut off then replaced with a rusty hook, his body smeared in honey then killed by thousands of bee stings.
Bernadette believes the story a bit more than Helen, who happens to go the whole hog and say his name five times in a mirror to her fear, but then is relieved when nothing happens.

She also meets Anne-Marie McCoy a woman with a young baby who explains more to her about the the lore as well. She then decides to write the paper explaining that people use the name as a scapegoat to escape the hardships of the living conditions of their situation.
She goes back for more research finding a young boy who tells her about the Candyman castrating a kid in the nearby restrooms. Helen goes to investigate the area and is besset upon by some youths one with a hook calling himself 'The Candyman'
With a black eye and busted lip Helen goes to the police then identifies the person in a line up, they arrest him in conjunction with the killings too. Leaving for home, in the underground parking lot Helen is confronted by the real Candyman. He's not happy that she's been making people not believe in him, now he'll have to spill innocent blood to make people believe again.

After blacking out Helen awakes covered in blood in Anne's apartment, Anne comes back almost immediately to find her dog beheaded and son missing. Seeing Helen there she freaks out on her attacking her. The police come taking Helen away who is arrested.
She is bailed out by her husband who doesn't know what to believe especially with all the evidence pointing to her and the media black naming her too. Later while alone in the bathroom the Candyman visits Helen again, causing her to blackout once more.
She comes around when Bernadette calling out for her in an adjacent room, the Candyman kills her making it look like Helen did it. This time they lock Helen in a psychiatric hospital.

A month later in an interview with her doctor, who doesn't believe that Helen is haunted by the Candyman, she says she can prove it and calls his name five times in a mirror. Nothing seemingly happens for a few seconds then he comes and brutally eviscerates the doctor. Freeing Helen from her restraints she escapes to flee home.
When she gets back she finds her husband living with one of his students, upset she flees to Cabrini green (the high rise) The Candyman comes to her saying if she surrenders herself to him he'll make her immortal too, this will also save the life of the baby. She does and he kisses her with the bees and the horribly eaten exposed insides all on show. We then find out from a mural that Helen looks almost exactly like the girl that he fell in love with all those years ago.

I'll leave it here as there's not a lot left but theres a few more twists and turns that at THN we don't like to spoil unless the movie is not worth watching at all. Now Candyman is an enjoyable psychological supernatural horror film. BUT I just can't get over the fact that the way it's executed is quite nasty to Helen, she is all fairness totally innocent of everything throughout this film.
Candyman is even supposedly in love with her yet frames her murder, twice! The irony is he's been wronged too so perpetuating a vengeful spirit (especially Vs other people of colour) seems wrong to me, I just end up feeling really bad for Helen every time i watch this.
Now does that make me hate the film?
No, I do love the film for a whole host of other reasons which is, the acting, tense situations and overall great story telling. Candyman receives a strong 4 out of 5 stars from THN.