083 - Candyman (1992)

DVD Box
Candyman is a film about a killer who appears after you say his name five times in a mirror.

During her thesis, Helen Lyle (Virginia Madsen) writes a report on serial killers. One such urban legend is the Candyman - a man born in the 19th Century who is brutally murdered by bees and is back from the dead to haunt anyone that says his name five times in a mirror.

Disbelieving of all the warnings, Helen utters the words and Candyman returns complete with his hooked arm.

Theatrical Poster
Source: Wikipedia
As a horror film, Candyman is intelligent; it is unlike most other horror films because it is able to present both a psychological terror and an obvious bloody horror to its audience from a real-life situation.

The psychological element is generated because the audience is fully aware from the start that the main characters are in charge of their own downfall; they don't have to say "Candyman" - but they do. The film plays on this and rather than showing the Candyman immediately it creates a brief pause where an expectant audience awaits the inevitable shock. As for the blood element, once the Candyman appears he tends to be followed immediately by a lot of it.

Despite this, it does have one flaw - The Candyman himself. Once he is revealed much of the psychological edge is taken away from the film and the scenes are far less jumpy. That said, a whole new fear is introduced by knowing that he does exist in more than just myth.

All-in-all a decent horror.

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