Candyman (film)

:"For other entities called Candyman, see Candyman."Infobox Film
name = Candyman


caption =
director = Bernard Rose
producer = Clive Barker
Steve Golin
writer = Bernard Rose
narrator =
starring = Virginia Madsen
Tony Todd
Xander Berkeley
Vanessa A. Williams
music = Philip Glass
cinematography = Anthony B. Richmond
editing = Dan Rae
distributor = TriStar Pictures
released = October 16, 1992
runtime = 99 min.
country = USA
language = English
budget = $8,000,000 (estimated)
gross = $25,792,310 (sub-total)
followed_by = ""
website =
amg_id = 1:8015
imdb_id = 0103919

"Candyman" is a 1992 slasher film starring Virginia Madsen, Tony Todd and Xander Berkeley. It was directed by Bernard Rose and is based on the short story "The Forbidden" by Clive Barker, though the film's scenario is switched from England to the United States (specifically Chicago). The film was scored by Philip Glass.

Plot

Helen Lyle is a graduate student conducting research for her thesis on urban legends. While interviewing freshmen about their superstitions, she hears about a local legend known as Candyman, the son of a slave who was brutally tortured and murdered because of a love affair with the daughter of a local (white) plantation owner. According to the legend, anyone who looks into a mirror and chants his name five times will summon him, but at the cost of his or her own life. Thinking this is just the new spin she has been looking for, Helen enters the notorious gang-ridden territory known as the Cabrini-Green housing projects (the site of Candyman's brutal murder). Helen believes that Candyman cannot exist, but when she calls him into our world a string of murders begins and the police look to her as the primary suspect. Now, only one person can set her free: the Candyman and Helen must fight to save her life and those of others.

Much like another of Clive Barker's creations, the Cenobites of the "Hellraiser" films, or the legend of "Bloody Mary", the Candyman must be called into existence, so often the deciding factor in a character's safety is his/her belief.

Differences between story and film

The short story concentrates solely on Helen and features Candyman in the last couple of pages only. The horror film is more of a slasher-film in comparison with the death scenes added to the story. Candyman was summoned by rumors and urban legends in a desolate and poor community. The purported legend about saying his name five times is not featured anywhere in the story. He gets shot in the heart.

Production

A then unknown Sandra Bullock would have been up for the part of Helen if Virginia Madsen did not take the role.

Exterior, hallway and stairway scenes were actually filmed in Cabrini-Green, though the producers had to make a deal with the ruling gang members to put them in the movie as extras to ensure the cast and crew's safety during filming. Even with this arrangement, a sniper put a bullet through the production van on the last day of filming, though no one was injured.

Cast

External links

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