Candyman (2021) Review
By Cedric Bell
Photo Credit: www.imdb.com
A sequel to the 1987 horror film of the same name, Candyman (2021) is another film that follows the recent trend of half-reboots. While still acknowledging the original, it goes in a mostly original direction, while using some of the same ideas and characters as the original. It stands on its own and can be fully enjoyed without any knowledge of the prior films, but does not completely neglect them either. But what really sets it apart from them is the fresh approach that it takes to horror filmmaking, interlacing the horror elements with strong social commentary and a uniquely stylised direction.
Directed by Nia Dacosta and written by Nia Dacosta, Jordan Peele and Win Rosenfeld, Candyman (2021) follows an artist's deepening obsession with an urban legend in his neighbourhood of Cabrini Green, the Candyman. According to the legend, if his name is said five times in a mirror, he comes to murder whoever said it. This pursuit of the urban legend brings him back into the public eye, and starts a new chain of crimes that tears the neighbourhood apart. While the premise sounds a bit cheesy, it is handled in a very mature and reserved way that keeps it from seeming silly, and focuses on much more specific themes rather than just the horror elements. It goes surprisingly deep into social and racial themes such as gentrification, ghettoisation and police brutality, and naturally interweaves these ideas into the story in ways that make it much more interesting than it would be otherwise. It also brings up an artistic dilemma about whether or not using suffering as an artistic muse is taking advantage of that suffering, or is bringing to light an important issue. Aside from the subject of police brutality, the film never offers simple answers to these issues, and instead raises the question and argues for both sides, creating a horror movie that has more serious ideas than most of its contemporaries, and is more interesting as a result.
The film has a lot of very unique and positive aspects to it. The cinematography is excellent and has a lot of visually interesting and meaningful shots, the best among them being the shadow puppet sequences that are used to great effect. The acting, especially from the leads Teyonah Parris and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, is very strong and makes them both likeable. The themes and ideas that it brings up are interesting and thoughtful, and it relies on suspense and eeriness rather than jumpscares or obvious horror. In my mind, this film is almost a masterpiece. Almost.
There are two major issues that this movie has. The first is that there is a pretty major reveal towards the end that didn’t work very well. Without going into specifics, a character makes a heel turn into a villain that feels rushed and forced. They explain it well enough, but it is explained with a flashback that comes far too late in the movie, and makes the twist seem sloppy and a little ridiculous as a result. The second issue this movie has is more of a matter of preference. Unlike Jordan Peele’s other two horror movies, the themes and ideas that are brought up in this movie, while interesting, are used very bluntly and obviously. There is little room for interpretation because these ideas are often just stated outright by the characters, which can make it feel like the audience is being beaten over the head with them. While I personally didn’t mind it, because the movie has a lot it has to say in a very short time, some might find it a little jarring. It is by no means a worse approach than the more subtle way Get out or Us addresses issues of race, but it is noticeably more direct.
Overall, the 2021 reboot of Candyman is an incredible, thoughtful horror movie, and though there are a few issues that hold it back from being perfect, it is a movie I cannot recommend highly enough that combines skin crawling horror and meaningful social commentary in a movie that I will be thinking about for a long, long time.