Diary entries forCandyman
Candyman
Lots to love about this. The call backs to the original are well done and provide good references and plot points. It’s also revealed that there are multiple ‘Candymen’, with the main character in this one, Anthony, become the fourth iteration. Tony Todd is also in this, which was cool to see. Anthony being the abducted child from the original film is very cool. The acting is good, editing great and cinematography surprisingly excellent. There isn’t enough of Candyman in this for me though, he’s barely seen and it’s not a very brutal film. It’s barely a horror, more of a thriller, as the film isn’t scary one bit. It’s still a good time though and we’ll worth watching. Watched at Vue with my beautiful ❤️
Candyman
...Hmm Might have to get back to yall on this one because uhhhh I was loving it until the last ~20 minutes and then less and less so the more the last act transpired hurriedly through what felt like should have been another hour of content, and then even less so leaving and thinking about it all The only things I feel confident in saying right now are: 1) this is goddamn Beautifully filmed throughout 2) there's this trend of Directed By Jordan Peele knockoffs (yall know the type: Antebellum, Them, Lovecraft Country) that isn't directed by him, tries to do what he did so well between the direction and storytelling with Us and Get Out, and fuck it up BAD in some big way that he didn't do because he didn't direct those knockoffs but those creators did. With Antebellum and Them, it's by over-focusing on black trauma to the point it'd be grossly uncomfortable Even If they hadn't been directed (in episodes of Them's case) or co-directed (in Antebellum's case) by white people, but because they are it's even worse. With Antebellum and Lovecraft Country, it's by at best completely missing the point in the message/messages you're trying to tell at best. To talk about this with Antebellum is to spoil the whole film, which I don't want to do not just because better people than me have already written whole essays on how fucked up Antebellum is, but honestly it's also just...not deserving of these many words at a certain point still? As for Lovecraft Country, well, let's just say by the time the episode aired where a lesbian couple (one white girl, one black girl) decided to strengthen their relationship by the white girl re-enacting/reliving Emmett Till's murder herself so she could understand empathy better and why the black girl was upset at Emmett's memorial, I was sick of hearing friends excuse the show as still worth powering through actually. No season 2 at least! And with Antebellum and now Candyman, it's by belaboring some points past what audiences get. My favorite film critic once said something that has stuck with me to this day, albeit not entirely verbatim, hopefully he's not mad if this is a misquote: "trust your audience and stop assuming everyone there's an idiot." The original Candyman was a fantastic film, undoubtedly still the best in the franchise, and knew when to let you fill in blanks for yourself. White cops arriving to the scene of an incident, shooting dead a dying black man, and arresting a crying black woman bystander? Kinda feels like it doesn't also need the cops then monologuing for three minutes about planting evidence or adding charges to make her life miserable and possibly incarcerate her permanently for you to understand the cops are fucked up people. Particularly in a film that was first intended to be released months after George Floyd nationwide protests A full minute devoted to Yahya Abdul-Mateen II making the same movements as Candyman in a mirror isn't really necessary beyond the first few moments for you to get that hey, maybe this is foreshadowing and his fucked-up stung hand that's spreading is something and maybe he's becoming the new Candyman. Right? Nope, gotta go on another 40 seconds just in case you weren't looking at first. Really want you to be aware of this before the final scene where he is the new Candyman so you're not completely surprised/possibly upset This is simultaneously an 87-minute-long (before credits) film that feels too long and too short. Simultaneously a film that prides itself on talking the talk, but talking too much and not doing enough walking. Simultaneously explaining time and again that we need to be better to each other, yet not without its own regressive stereotypes (let us have queer characters in major theatrically-released films that don't have lisps, aren't comic relief, or don't shade constantly. Please. I'm begging. We are more than this.). Simultaneously bloody as hell, and not really showing much in the way of kills that get to that point; kudos on how creatively shot the few kills we actually do get to see are, though The contrasts are pretty impressive! So were the puppet scenes! Wish the film was too. Looked forward to it for two years :<
Candyman
Fantastic linkage to the original, visceral and pretty raw racial, social, bodily materials. Where the the 1990's pawed around the margins of the topics in question, this one dives in and scoops at the guts. I wouldn't have minded a longer cut, it felt like it was rushing to try and give adequate time to all the ideas on the table... but is that really messy like other users are stating? Maybe, but whatever-- a beautiful and painful film, I couldn't stop the tears.
Candyman
"Say my name, say my name When no one is around you"
Candyman
MAJOR TRYPOPHOBIA WARNING Though i guess by now everyone knows (thank god i watched the kill count before i even saw this movie so i knew when to look away) Its a decent horror film but i felt like the ending needed more... 7.5 out of 10 stars
Candyman
you're obviously in the wrong place
Candyman
It’s been nearly a week since I watched Candyman, and I haven’t been able to get my thoughts together about this film, but it’s a film that has haunted me for the past week. Nia DaCosta has created an even deeper lore, which still feels as relevant for today as it did when the first film was released in the 90’s. It’s a truly haunting piece, which does have it’s issues, as it doesn’t dive deep enough into some topics, while really digging into others, but it still ends up being a cohesive and captivating film. I’ve been wanting to see this in a theater since the first trailer was released, and I am beyond glad that I was able to catch this before it got out of the theaters down here. Candyman is a remarkable little film that I cannot wait to see, and I’d love to see if there was another longer cut, as I’d love to spend more time in DaCosta’s new world she’s built. She is certainly a director that I willl be keeping my eye out for in the future, since this is a stunning introduction to her work.
Candyman
this had so much potencial, i wish we could’ve seen more deaths and not just off-screen — the art critic and the school one were literally the best part of the whole movie. after awhile i felt like they were there just to keep us entertained. very predictable but i still enjoyed it! especially the way they showed the story from the original movie and the last scene in the police car
Candyman
turns out this is a sequel.
Candyman
fun watch however i got kinda bored in the third act :/
