We dare you to say his name five times. Based on a chilling story by Clive Barker, Bernard Rose writes & directs the atmospheric & blood-soaked gothic frightfest that launched star Tony Todd into the stratosphere of all-time horror icons. When a skeptical grad student studying urban mythology investigates a murder in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green housing complex, she discovers the story of a supernatural, hook-handed killer may be more than just legend. Featuring Virginia Madsen, Kasi Lemmons, and Xander Berkeley, plus an astonishing Phillip Glass score, Candyman is a powerful, political piece of filmmaking about class and race, as well as one of the most terrifying cinematic nightmares of the last thirty years.
“Candyman is an upper-register horror item that delivers the requisite shocks and gore but doesn’t cheat or cop out.” – Variety
“At its heart, Candyman terrifies because of its ideas. It sinks its horrific foundations very much in the real world of poverty and racial alienation.” – Adam Smith, Empire
“The film’s spooky atmosphere is accentuated by Anthony B. Richmond’s cinematography and Philip Glass’s score. Ms. Madsen’s performance is a lot more enterprising than what the material requires; the same can be said for Mr. Rose’s direction.” – Janet Maslin, The New York Times
