THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
1992’s Candyman felt like a revolutionary when it first came out and sadly, the sequels from the same decade failed to bring back that energy. However, producer and co writer Jordan Peele was able to pull it off in an unexpected way.
PLOT
The 2021 film of the same name retcons the 90s sequels and takes place directly after the original film. The setting is in a 2019 Cabrini Green and follows visual artist Anthony McCoy, who has recently moved into the area with his girlfriend, art gallery director Brianna Cartwright. When her brother Troy (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) visits with his boyfriend Grady (Kyle Kaminsky), he tells an urban legend of graduate student Helen Lyle, who lost her mind and killed herself in a fire after attempting to sacrifice a baby. Anthony would roam the neighborhood of Cabrini to find a creative spark that would turn his career around. After getting stung by a bee, he encounters laundromat owner William Burke, who shares the story of Candyman that Helen was researching before her death. He explains that in his childhood, the Candyman he encountered was Sherman Fields, a hook handed man who gave candy to children in the neighborhood. In 1977, he was found a suspect when a little girl found a razor blade in her candy. Burke encountered him in the laundromat and when he screamed out of fear, he inadvertently alerted the police. When they entered the laundromat, they beat him to death. However, Sherman was proven to be innocent when more razor blades were found in children's candies. The legend implies that if someone were to say 'Candyman' five times in the mirror, his spirit will kill those who summon him. Anthony shares this knowledge with Brianna and sarcastically summons him. Little does he know that it worked and the spirit of Sherman is free. Anthony would then develop an art exhibit based on the legend and displays it at Brianna's art gallery. He does become dissatisfied when critics do not give a positive reaction toward his work. When the show closes, Brianna's co worker Clive (Brian Privler) and his girlfriend/intern Jerrica (Miriam Moss) get killed after summoning Candyman. Brianna would find their bodies in the following morning but days later, a group of teenage girls get killed for summoning him as well. As those days build up, Anthony's bee sting becomes a scab and spreads all over his arm. He also sees the spirit of Sherman when listening to Helen's research tapes. He does get the chance of being interviewed by art critic Finley Stephens (Rebecca Spence), who originally disparaged his work. Angered of how she acts as a bandwagon, he convinces her to summon Candyman. She does so when she uses the bathroom and he leaves frightened when he sees Sherman again. Just when he leaves, Finley is killed by the spirit. He does go to dinner with Brianna and her friends, but becomes unsettled of the coincidence of people who have died when he finds out the critic died. He visits Burke again and asks to tell him more of the urban legend. Burke explains to him the origin of the original Candyman Helen did her research on, Daniel Robitaille. Robitaille was an artist as well in the 1890s and when he had an affair with a white woman, he was brutally tortured to death: Had his hand chopped, replaced with a meat hook, got smothered in honeycomb to be stung by bees and burned alive. Burke summarizes how Candyman symbolizes the ongoing racial injustice that has happened for generations. Brianna does see his art gallery that are the past victims who symbolize Candyman (Robitaille, Sherman, Samuel Evans and William Bell). Anthony tries to explain that he summoned Candyman on accident, but she doesn't believe him. She tries to prove her point by trying to summon him, but he aggressively destroys the mirrors in the room to save her. Scared of him, she spends the night at her brother's. The following morning, Anthony would wake up with shards of glass in his stung arm, as a result of sleeping in his studio. When he gets checked in at the hospital, the death of teenage girls occur and get reported on the news. After getting bandaged up, a nurse shares that he was born in Cabrini. This surprises him because his mother Anne-Marie told him he was born in the South Side. He does visit her to confirm that she told him that to keep him safe from the truth. The truth is that when he was a baby, Candyman abducted him in an attempt to kill him. But Helen was able to save him, which sacrificed her life in the process. When the spirit was defeated, the neighborhood vowed to never say his name again. Shocked of the truth, Anthony storms out and returns to the abandoned neighborhood. When Brianna returns to the apartment to pick up her belongings, she becomes worried that Anthony isn't home. She goes to Burke's Laundromat where she suspects he could be, only to be abducted by the owner himself. It turns out that he became obsessed with the urban legend of Candyman when his sister was murdered by the spirit of Sherman. He plans to have Anthony killed by the police so that he can be the new Candyman, become an instrument of vengeance. When Brianna wakes up at an abandoned church, she sees Anthony in a fugue state and Burke chops his stung hand to replace it with a hook, which will complete the transformation. She does run away from him but when he catches up, she defends herself by stabbing him to death with a pen. Anthony catches up, only to collapse in her arms. The police arrive after answering Burke's call but when they find them, they choose to shoot Anthony down. One officer intimidates her to agree that Anthony instigated them into shooting him. In order to escape, she decides to summon the new spirit that is her now dead boyfriend, who slaughters every present cop. Just as she sees him kill the last cop standing, the film ends with Candyman taking the appearance Robitaille who instructs Brianna to "Tell Everyone".
THOUGHTS
Around the time I saw the original film, I discovered that this sequel was in the works. And when I found out, I felt that it had big expectations to exceed. By the time I got to see this in theaters, it satisfies me when I say they reached them alright. Peele, co writer Win Rosenfeld and director Nia DaCosta were successfully able to craft such a transcendent story that regains the original spirit. They pull it off by being just as socially conscious, reminding us that social injustice is the true monster that plagues this world. The puppet sequence that plays during the credits further implies it. Being reminded of that is scarier than the violence that doubles up here. I also believe Robert Lowe's score to be smoothly haunting. Because of it, you can feel the presence of terror you’re supposed to feel. Like the stories before this, it surprisingly becomes a passing of the torch that represents that legacies will be difficult to tarnish. Nailing this story would not work without the stellar cast we got. Yahya Abdul Mateen II gives his best lead performance to date in the role of Anthony. Like Helen, it is his curiosity that leads to his downfall. The difference is that he can't fix his mess, which is why the end of his life is more tragic, because he never meant for anything bad to happen. The reveal that he was the baby from the first film, because it was one of those things you couldn't expect. When we first see Vanessa Williams appear, confirming her to be Anthony's mother, the dots were connected with perfect lines. Seeing the returning actress was great because her character is just as scared as she was before. She knows if she acknowledges the monster that abducted her son, he would only get stronger and she could not bear with that risk. Lying to Anthony was the best thing she could do as a loving mother because the further he was from the truth, the less of a chance Candyman would find him again. And sadly, he did. Teyonah Parris also delivers a great performance in this horror sequel. As the final girl Brianna, she brings such real agency to it. She is committed to her work, but that is only a distraction from her personal tragedy that is the death of her father by suicide. However when things happen to Anthony, she has to break from that mold because that shows how much she loves him. She was spared by Candyman because not only did she finally believe in him but without her, the legend would die again. There is no telling how far she'll go to spread the word, but it'll definitely be enough for the legend to grow. The role of Burke is easily my favorite performance from Colman Domingo because he is the most different from prior roles one would consider likable. This is the most broken character we have ever seen from the series because he is mentally scarred from his past, hence his obsession with the urban legend. He is full of regret for unintentionally being responsible for Sherman's death and if he did summon him, he would've killed him instantly. This experience made him believe that Candyman should be a protector to his community, rather than a boogeyman. I don't know if this would make him be at peace with himself, but he definitely was proud of it, which was good enough for him. And lastly, I do think Tony Todd's cameo was clever, but I got to give credit to Michael Hargrove. He stood out as Sherman because you felt his innocence in the flashback, while also sensing his rage when he stalks Anthony. Pulling that off without speaking is powerful, which is a performance that should be studied as well as the rest of the cast. This is a better sequel then anticipated, but I still think this story had issues. First off, why would Burke's mother have her son go do the laundry on his own when there is a wanted suspect on the loose? Even though Sherman was innocent, it is always a bad idea for a kid to do things alone in a bad neighborhood the way Cabrini Green is depicted. And again, if he is innocent, he's slimming down the chances when throwing candy at Burke through a hole. Also, when did Helen record his audiotapes? It is cool to hear the voice of Virginia Madsen, but it is confusing on the time frame she made them. If it was in the span of her recovering after her assault, I wish that was clear. I also wonder why didn't Anthony take any antibiotics/medicine for the bee sting? Had he done that, his arm would've not decayed as it would. And how come Brianna only questions it once? She should've been on top of his ass about taking medicine whether or not he was allergic to bees. And how come he wasn't questioned by authorities when Finley died? I don't want the guy to be in trouble, but she did have a husband. So he had to know someone was there before she died. And why was he avoiding his mother? There is no legit reason he did so, so what gives? I know it gives a build up for the twist to unravel when we see her, but it doesn't add up. Going forward, why did the spirit of Sherman have razors with the candy if he was innocent? I want to feel bad for this guy, but he's sending mixed messages for trying to taunt Anthony like that. And lastly, there is a big continuity error in the ending: Brianna says 'Candyman' four times when he's supposed to come out after fives. I counted and I checked the subtitles. So if you're saying the fifth one counts from her first attempt when Anthony broke the glass or from the last cop that dies, then that is about as rigged as when Jerrica gets killed for summoning him when her eyes closed. Other than that, this movie's still pretty good. To wrap up, 2021's Candyman is a good sequel for bringing back the spirit of the original film. If you still love urban legends, check this out.
If you or someone you know is struggling with depression or thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
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