A clever little film based on Clive Barker’s short story “The Forbidden” the titular character is an urban myth, a supernatural killer who comes after you if you say his name in the mirror five times and tears you apart “from your groin to your gullet” with the oversized hook sticking out of his bloody arm. A graduate student (Virginia Madsen) and her unlucky compatriot go to the Cabrini Green housing projects where the legend originated and the disbelief that they spread among Candyman’s flock compel him to appear once again.

Candyman is a horror movie for adults. It would have been very easy, and very unimaginative, to simply have Candyman running around hacking people to pieces. Instead, Candyman’s primary mission is to keep his myth alive in the minds of the people who believe in him. When Helen challenges his legend he is compelled into action and begins killing again to remind his congregation that he’s very real.

Due to Candyman’s intervention, Helen’s life quickly turns upside down. The same policemen who came to her aid earlier accuse her of murder, her personal relationships begin to deteriorate, and her friends and family believe she has gone insane. In lesser movies these elements would be secondary to the run-up between hero and villain, but Candyman makes these elements central to the story, tearing everything away from Helen so she has nothing left to lose when she goes to her fate.

In some ways, Candyman is a throwback to the darkly seductive monsters from years past. The masterful Tony Todd portrays him as a hypnotic, majestic figure who is portrayed as being oddly compelling and sympathetic, given the horrific violence that follows in his wake. The relationship that he has with Helen goes beyond simple victim and stalker and becomes a morbid seduction. It’s sad that later sequels didn’t keep this aspect of the character, degenerating into the more gruesomely obvious aspects of his story.

The movie is not without it’s flaws. The fashion is terribly out of date with modern sensibilities, a couple of actors fall flat, a couple of dialogue bits ring hollow, and people either love or hate the Philip Glass score. Nitpicking aside, this is a very smart and scary movie that deserves to be considered a classic of the genre.

* Acting – 4
* Blood – 3
* Violence – 3
* Partying – 1
* Language – 2
* Humor – 2
* Predictability – 2
* Girls – 3
* Gore – 4
* Sexuality – 2
* Torture – 1
* Overall – 2