Candyman II: Farewell to the Flesh

THE STORY: One of my ambitions in my younger days was to go to Mardi Gras. I never have...yet. I've never even been to Louisiana, let alone New Orleans. But one day I'll make it there. I just like to party. I like to rock and roll all night and party every day.

Well, Mardi Gras is where this story takes place. I've watched the Candyman flicks out of order so I suppose I need to say that. I watched the third one first, then the original and finally this one. In this flick Candyman's origin as established in the first movie is changed a little bit. They show the death of Candyman by a mob in the 19th century but in the first movie its said that he was burnt alive. Not in this death scene. Its got something to do with a mirror.

Annie is a teacher. She seems pretty cool, but her mom is a real bitch. I say that because I never liked rich southern ladies in movies. They always act like they're so much better than the rest of us and it does get on my nerves after awhile. That fits Annie's mom to a "T". Annie's students, especially Matthew seem to be very scared of the Candyman myth. Annie's brother Ethan is accused of the murder of Prof. Purcell, a noted scholar. But even though Ethan did threaten Purcell he didn't kill him. Candyman did. Purcell was in the first movie as one of the people that scoffed at the idea of Candyman. In this movie he foolishly says the name 5 times and Candyman gets medieval on his ass.

Annie tries to get to the bottom of this, as she knows her brother couldn't murder someone. Her hubby, Paul tries to help, but he thinks the whole thing is bunk. They investigate the old family house, long since abandoned and find nothing but a crumbling mansion and a vine covered slave quarters out back left there since the 19th century. There's also a few bums living in the house, but that doesn't come to anything. The police believe that Ethan killed his father also in the old house.

Finding nothing, Annie soon returns to work. Her students are fighting when she arrives over the myth of Candyman. That's when Annie does what she must to get the movie rolling....to prove that Candyman doesn't exist she says his name five times into a mirror. The kids are horrified, but  Annie thinks she has made her point. Well, Candyman always takes his time to kill unbelievers and if he wants something from you he sets out to kill everyone you know first. That's why Candyman appears later on that night and skewers Paul in front of Annie! This is one of the few times in a movie where the police actually do act like they have some sense! They don't arrest Annie for the murder...they don't actually believe that "Candyman" killed Paul but even though Annie was alone in the house with Paul when he was murdered it doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure that she had no weapon nor the strength it would take to murder her husband in such a way.

Naturally, Candyman goes on killing folks. The body count is really kind of low though. Candyman kills people that Annie knows or has met, but not that many. In one of Candyman's appearances he tells Annie that she is pregnant and will have a daughter. Annie finds though that her mother has been lying to her. Her mom didn't want her to know that she is related to Candyman! When Candyman was killed his white lover, Caroline, was pregnant. Candyman is Annie's great-Grandfather! Annie's mom ashamed of this fact, that the legend has dogged her family and probably that Candyman is black, so she hid this from everyone. That's how Annie's father died. In searching for the truth he called on Candyman and got a hook in the back. Annie learns something else too...Candyman's soul lives in an old mirror once owned by Caroline. Candyman makes an appearance at the courthouse and kills a cop questioning Ethan. Ethan is then killed by the police while trying to escape. Candyman also shows up when Annie confronts her mom about the lies and   kills the old bag on the spot in front of Annie.

Deducing that Candyman can only be destroyed by breaking the mirror, Annie goes to find it at the old family house. Its nowhere to be found, but she does finds Matthew hiding there. Matthew has been missing for a day or so. Apparently he has been hiding there hoping to see Candyman for himself. (I don't know how this kid figured out anything...I'm just telling you what happened.) The only place the mirror could be is in the old slave quarters. Annie and Matthew go there, but Annie falls through some stairs into some water. Its raining and the area is flooding. Matthew goes to get help. Annie finds the mirror but Candyman shows up. He shows Annie his history...how he became Candyman. Moved by his suffering Annie almost submits to be with him, but then she remembers all of the people that Candyman killed. Angered she tries to break the mirror but floodwaters sweep her and Candyman away. Matthew and some kids from her class arrive and pull her from the water. Annie grabs the mirror as it floats pass and Candyman arrives again. This time he tells her he's not giving her a choice about coming with him. Annie then shatters the mirror, which makes Candyman break into pieces like glass. At last he is destroyed!

This movie was sort of annoying. It got slow and there wasn't any real scares. There were a fair number of fake scares in it. People popping up on camera with a little music to startle, that kind of thing. I didn't expect to be scared. The first Candyman movie was a genuinely well written piece of horror. This one was lacking. Oh, its not horrible, but its not scary either. Plus I couldn't connect with the characters at all. Annie didn't seem to have a personality. The other characters didn't either really. Her mother was unlikable from the beginning even though I think we were supposed to somehow sympathize with her.

Candyman was once again played by Tony Todd. He can be seen in movies like the rock and on Star Trek as Worf's brother, Kurn. The actor that was Annie's husband Paul, Timothy Carhart can be seen on Star Trek: The Next generation in an episode where Data foils a plot to overthrow the Klingon government by the Romulans (titled Redemption. He was the starfleet guy that didn't trust Data).

Best Lines: "There are no monsters."-Annie tries to convince herself that Candyman cannot exist.

1.) Why doesn't Annie have a southern accent? well, a lot of the actors don't and the fakeness of their trying shines through, but if she was raised in New Orleans why does she sound like a chick from Delaware? I guess its like Kevin Costner not even trying to put on an English accent in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

2.) After Paul and Annie find the bums living in the abandoned family house Annie still wants to stay and look around. Oh, hell no. Paul you idiot! Idiot for not dragging her out of there! The entire time they're looking around Paul is upset about it, and he even sees from a balcony the bums climbing all over his truck. Annie says "will you relax" in a tone that makes it seem like he's acting childish. That makes Paul an even bigger idiot. I'd have dragged Annie's but outta there. There's no way I'm hanging around a bunch of homeless strangers in a secluded mansion. Those guys could have easily killed the both of them if they wanted to, and stolen the truck.

3.) When Annie tries to find the connection of Candyman to her family she holds a few pictures. The one she's looking for is of her great grandmother, Caroline taken in the 19th or early 20th century. Its in plain sight...in her hand, yet she rifles through a few polaroids as if they might be the one! C'mon. Its just too stupid to have her holding the picture she wants...looking straight at it (its TWICE the size of the polaroids) and she rifles through the others.

NUDITY AND SEX: Very little. A few Mardi Gras partyers. Annie is never seen from the front shirtless.

HUH?: Apparently in New Orleans if you pass out drunk in front of the city courthouse or police station as long as you have "I'm drunk let me sleep" written on your back everyone will leave you alone.

THE TALLY: I really like Candyman...really...out of all of the magic-ghost- killer-guys in the movies I think Candyman is actually scary...he doesn't crack jokes or kill people in ridiculous ways. He seems cold and dignified. Too bad this movie didn't actually do anything new with him.There's nothing in this movie to write home about. The Inferno can only give it a two devil rating and that's being generous. Too much candy will give you a toothache.