Retrospective Look At 'Candyman'
Image Source: IMDb
Candyman is a horror film unlike any other. The film took real-life horrors for black Americans living in Chicago and added a supernatural villain into the mix. The result was a film that forced audiences to realize that the real world is far scarier than anything that can be put on screen. Upon first watch, many audience members may not catch the message the film is trying to tell, but it is this message that has allowed the film to stay relevant more than 30 years after its initial release. Let’s take a look at the film and why it is so important.
Candyman is loosely based on Clive Barker’s The Forbidden and follows a graduate student named Helen who is doing a thesis on urban legends. She has decided to focus on the legend of Candyman. According to the stories, if you say his name five times into a mirror, he will appear and gut you with his hook hand. Helen doesn’t believe a word of it until she hears about Candyman’s connection to the local housing project Cabrini-Green, which is located not far from her high-rise condo in Chicago. She travels to the housing project and talks with some of the residents, where they tell her that he haunts this area and murdered a local woman a few months earlier. Helen convinces multiple people that he does not exist, and this leads to Candyman coming after her and framing her for multiple murders. He refuses to stop until she willingly joins him and becomes an urban legend of her own.
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Image Source: IMDb
On the surface, the film seems like your typical slasher film, but it is so much more than that. Creator and director Bernard Rose filmed in the actual Cabrini-Green housing project and even hired some of the youth who lived there to act in the film. This not only built a rapport with the community, but it also allowed him to learn about their community to make sure that he portrayed them correctly. The set design was expertly done because it not only was terrifying with its use of graffiti, dark lighting, and derelict conditions, but it also forced audiences to recognize that these are real living conditions for many Americans. This set was more terrifying than a haunted forest or abandoned asylum.
The story in the film was not only deeper than most of the horror films that were being released during the late 80s and early 90s, but it also focused more on the horrors of the world around us. The film dives deeply into the racial injustices that existed during the 90s and, unfortunately, still exist today. When Helen is learning about the woman who was murdered in the housing project, they keep telling her that they had to call 911 multiple times, but “no one would ever come.” This is a very real issue that is vividly illustrated when Helen is attacked near the housing project, and the police arrive within minutes. Helen is also fully aware of this and points it out more than once in the film. If you are not aware of the history of America in 1992, you may not have heard of the Rodney King riots that broke out in Los Angeles after four police officers were exonerated after they were caught on video beating motorist Rodney King. The riots started on April 29 and lasted until May 4th, resulting in more than 2,000 people being injured and more than 60 people killed. The riots actually broke out on the day that there was supposed to be a test screening of Candyman, and Rose said that he was concerned that the riots might make people feel that the film was racist.
Candyman is a film that has stayed relevant due to its honest narrative about racism in America and also its approach to storytelling. While the film is considered a slasher, it follows more of the structure of a classic monster movie like Frankenstein. Candyman is a character that, when you learn his story, you sympathize with him even though you know what he is doing is wrong. I don’t think this film will ever lose its relevance, and it is a must-see for everyone, even if you aren’t a horror fan.
You can stream Candyman on Peacock.
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