RANKING the Candyman Films / Candyman SPEED-ART
Say my name five times, and I shall appear! …well, unless I couldn’t bee bothered. See what I did there? Anyways…I still have Candyman on my mind since I just released The Evolution of Candyman on my main channel, Tell It Animated, and am eager to rank the four Candyman movies from worst to best!
4. Candyman 3: Day of The Dead
Starting with the worst of the worst, and probably one of the worst movies I've watched for my channel - that's saying a lot since I watched all of the Leprechaun movies - of course, I'm talking about the third Candyman film, Candyman 3: Day of the Dead. Now I'm not saying this is a worse-made movie than some of the Leprechaun films, but in comparison to how the series started, it's probably one of the worst come-downs ever to exist. The acting is awful, minus Tony Todd, who still brings his A-game to the role despite the lackluster script. The music is cringe-worthy 90's style RnB. What were they thinking when they took out the Philip Glass-style score from the first two films? This soundtrack is awful, there are two weird romantic scenes that are horribly shot, and the lead actress was apparently a playboy bunny, funnily enough, which is a huge fall from grace from the lead actresses of the previous films. And even Candyman's costume looks way too tight, which makes his long right arm way more noticeable than in the previous films. Even the story is an almost beat-for-beat recreation of the second film, which in itself was pretty similar to the first film. So it's just a poor copy of a copy. All in all, skip this film. My 30-second recap is better than anything this movie has going for it, minus Tony Todd, of course.
3. Candyman (2021)
Okay, so coming in at third place - and I'm gonna get some blowback for this - is Candyman (2021). Like Halloween (2018), it's a sequel to the original film while ignoring the movie in between and mostly succeeds pretty well. The direction, cinematography, acting, and special effects are all pretty top-rate for a horror film, but the story is pretty lackluster. It feels like it doesn't really ever start, which is fine if it's a slow burn, but then the third act just hits it into third gear as though to make up for the meandering pace of the first hour or so. Unfortunately, it feels unearned because of its insane shift. Now, I think everything could have worked if they set up things a little better, and when we finally get to see Candyman in person, not confined to reflections, the kills are pretty sweet…but then the movie just ends. It's on a nice note, but I was like, “hey this movie just started what the heck is going on here?” And I looked forward to this film since it got announced years ago, and I just left somewhat underwhelmed. So for those reasons, it’s number three on my list.
2. Candyman 2: Farewell To The Flesh
And coming in second place is gonna be the underrated sequel, Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh. Now, this is mostly a copy of the first film, but it adds in more information to Candyman's lore, deals with familiar issues, and has some pretty great kills. Tony Todd, like always, kills it in this role, especially in the flashback scene, which helps to humanize the character even more. I also enjoyed the side characters and the new setting in New Orleans. It's pretty well shot, and the music is similar to the first film, which helps to set the mood of the movie. But yeah, it is too similar to the first, although if you like the first film, this is a nice addition to the franchise, even if it doesn't have much to add.
1. Candyman (1992)
And coming in at number one, could it be any other film but Candyman (1992)? This movie has amazing performances from both Tony Todd and Virginia Madsen, both of which probably deserved academy award nominations for these performances. The Philip Glass music is absolutely haunting and helps to sell the dream-like style of the movie, almost like a modern-day Dracula film. And even though you don't really see Candyman for the first 40 minutes of the film, I never get bored, and that's a true testament to the work of director Bernard Rose. He kept it interesting and lets the audience learn more about Candyman as the film goes along, even making us question if Candyman is real or just a delusion of Helen Lyle. And Candyman is scary in this film, but alluring at the same time. This movie comes across as less of a slasher film and more of a Gothic romantic horror movie. So, all in all, I don’t have too many negative comments about this film. Some makeup work seems a little low-budget in certain scenes, but this is a high-class horror film, and I highly recommend you check it out.
Thanks for tuning in, and if you haven’t already, check out The Evolution of Candyman. It's probably one of my favourite animations I've done. And Until next time, I've been Aaron, and I'll tell you something later!