Anthony and his partner move into a loft in the now gentrified Cabrini-Green, and after a chance encounter with an old-timer exposes Anthony to the true story behind Candyman, he unknowingly opens a door to a complex past that unravels his own sanity and unleashes a terrifying wave of violence.

Credits: TheMovieDb.

Film Cast:

• Anthony McCoy: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
• Brianna Cartwright: Teyonah Parris
• William Burke: Colman Domingo
• Troy Cartwright: Nathan Stewart-Jarrett
• Grady Smith: Kyle Kaminsky
• Anne-Marie McCoy: Vanessa Williams
• Clive Privler: Brian King
• Jerrika: Miriam Moss
• Finley Stephens: Rebecca Spence
• Jameson: Carl Clemons-Hopkins
• Danielle Harrington: Christiana Clark
• Candyman / Sherman Fields: Michael Hargrove
• Billy: Rodney L Jones III
• Trina: Ireon Roach
• Annika: Breanna Lind
• Haley Gulick: Heidi Grace Engerman
• Samantha: Sarah Lo
• Boof: Malic White
• Detective Lipez: Mark Montgomery
• Jack Hyde: Torrey Hanson
• Librarian: Cassie Kramer
• Celine: Sarah Wisterman
• Gil Cartwright: Cedric Mays
• Restaurant server: Alec Silver
• Young Brianna: Hannah Love Jones
• Dr. Collins: J. Nicole Brooks
• Reporter Devlin Sharpe: Pamela Jones
• Sabrina: Genesis Denise Hale
• Haley’s Mom: Katherine Purdie
• Jane Ji: Tien Tran
• Police Officer Jones: Mike Geraghty
• Police Officer Smith: Aaron Crippen
• Police Officer Rooney: Dan Fierro
• Ringleader: Nadia Simms
• TV News Anchor: Nancy Pender
• Samuel Evans: Johnny Westmoreland
• John Crawley: Guy Spencer
• The Kid: Daejon Staeker
• Candyman / Daniel Robitaille: Tony Todd
• Helen Lyle (voice): Virginia Madsen
• Officer Cooke (uncredited): Ben Marten

Film Crew:

• Characters: Clive Barker
• Producer: Jordan Peele
• Director of Photography: John Guleserian
• Sound Mixer: J.T. Mueller
• Executive Producer: Aaron L. Gilbert
• Original Music Composer: Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe
• Executive Producer: David Kern
• Sound Designer: Chris Diebold
• Visual Effects: Brian Adler
• Executive Producer: Jason Cloth
• Sound Designer: Michael Babcock
• Sound Effects Editor: Jeff Sawyer
• Production Design: Cara Brower
• Sound Effects Editor: Ian Herzon
• Makeup Artist: Esther J. Han
• Set Decoration: Jami Primmer
• Director: Nia DaCosta
• Makeup Department Head: Aimee Lippert
• Costume Design: Lizzie Cook
• Visual Effects Producer: Catherine Hughes
• Editor: Catrin Hedström
• Boom Operator: Adam Mohundro
• Stunts: Brian Peters
• Sound Mixer: Nick Ray Harris
• Producer: Win Rosenfeld
• Executive Producer: Shauna Bryan
• Producer: Ian Cooper
• Hair Department Head: Jessi Dean
• Visual Effects: Justin Lacalamita
• Art Direction: Ines Rose
• VFX Artist: Kutay Cengil
• VFX Artist: Daniel Edery
• Visual Effects: Michael Furniss
• Makeup Artist: DeShawn Bowman
• Makeup Artist: Sirena Crosby
• Makeup Artist: Nini Jenkins

Movie Reviews:

• MSB: I rewatched the 1992’s Candyman in preparation for Nia DaCosta’s (Little Woods) direct sequel, so I could get the most out of it without having to force my memory to kick in. Despite being addicted to Philip Glass’ score of the original film, Bernard Rose’s take on Clive Barker’s short story isn’t exactly one of my favorite classics, even though I appreciate it quite a bit. Expectations-wise, I didn’t know the director beforehand, but I was curious to see what DaCosta could bring to the famous tale.

  Unfortunately, I’m not the right person to tackle the heavy themes depicted in the filmmaker’s sophomore flick. From an evident, strong opinion about gentrification to the biased white critical lenses, the director has a clear vision and firm messages concerning cultural injustice. As a white European young man, I’m not going to pretend to have experience or even enough knowledge to approach these necessary, sensitive debates, so I’ll let other critics, namely Black authors, spread their voices.

  Nevertheless, I have mixed feelings about this sequel. Despite being beautifully shot (John Guleserian), edited (Catrin Hedström), and scored (Robert A. A. Lowe), the thematically driven screenplay often feels forced and occasionally preachy. Characters are thinly developed through an uncommonly too short runtime. The never-ending silhouette recaps of the previous movie are unnecessary, and weirdly enough, a major revelation of this sequel is partially ruined by simply (re)watching the original film. The extreme gore is still present, though slightly toned down, at least from my perspective.

  Technically and visually, it’s truly one of the most interesting movies of the year. Sadly, it isn’t able to transmit the same quality to the two pillars of filmmaking – story and characters.”

  Rating: C