THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, March 31, 1995 TAG: 9503310077
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E9 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ALAN CHANG, TEENOLOGY MOVIE CRITIC
LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines
THE FIRST ``Candyman'' horror film terrorized audiences in 1992. Now, the hook-handed spirit is back in ``Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh.''
Like most sequels, this film does not live up to the first.
This ``Candyman'' takes place during the Mardi Gras festival in New Orleans. The whole story centers around Annie, a young schoolteacher played by Kelly Rowan, who is trying to prove that her brother is innocent of a mysterious murder. As she begins to probe into the mystery, Annie uncovers her family's startling secret relationship with a 19th century black slave artist (aka Candyman), played by Tony Todd.
According to the legend, the Candyman was brutally killed for falling in love with his master's beautiful daughter. His tortured soul is forever trapped in the mirror. If he is called upon, Candyman's spirit will appear and slaughter the person with his hook hand. Unfortunately in the film, some people are still dumb enough to try to summon the Candyman, including the doubtful Annie. As a result, the audience gets a chance to witness senseless killings for about two hours.
The first 10 minutes of the film is intriguing. But as it drags on, the film begins to slow down and the plot begins to fall apart. Trying feebly to sustain the audience's tension, filmmakers throw in predictable scares and unnecessary nudity, making ``Candyman'' a second-rate horror flick.
Although the mystery is supposed to be unsolvable, it is easy to figure out. That's partly because most of it was solved in the first film and partly because the writers have done a terrible job in building the mystery.
The audience not only gets to see guts flying everywhere but also gets to see acting at its worst. Although the actors try to seem scared, they are not convincing. The only exception is Kelly Rowan, who does looks frightened when she is supposed to look frightened.
The film is a real disappointment. Hopefully the name ``Farewell to the Flesh'' really means what it says: No more bad sequels. MEMO: ``Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh'' is rated R and those under 17 must
be accompanied by parent or guardian. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Alan Chang is a Kempsville High School junior.
NICOLA GOODE, Gramercy Pictures photo
Tony Todd again stars as the terrifying Candyman.
by CNB