Set
in New Orleans this time, the film starts with the re-introduction of
pony-tailed university lecturer Phillip Purcell (Michael Culkin reprising
his earlier, similarly short, role), who's come to town for the Madri Gras
festival to promote his new book "The Legend of the Candyman".
To disprove the myth to the audience at his book signing, he says the name Candyman in the mirror 5 times. But, as with the previous film, this proves to be not such a good idea. As the Candyman (played once more by Tony Todd) appears shortly afterwards and slaughters him.
He then goes on to track down some of his descendants who happen to be in the neighbourhood, one of which being schoolteacher Annie Tarrent (Kelly Rowan) who tries to dispel the Candyman myth to her class by doing the old "say the name in the mirror 5 times" trick, only to later find out he's all too real, as her husband gets brutally slaughtered for her troubles.
Her brother Ethan (William O'Leary), who was present when Purcell got killed and also witnessed their fathers death many years ago, gets implicated in the murder and police believe him to be the killer of all 3 victims. Annie however, knowing the Candyman to be all too real, does some investigating and finds that this malevolent monster was actually her great-great grandfather and that her father was trying to stop him when he was killed.
She then sets out to try and discover how her father intended to stop
the Candyman, in the hope of bringing the grisly murders to a halt. The
answer lies in their family's old house, but as the body count
increases, police begin to suspect that Annie could also be involved in
the murders.
The film is a worthy follow up but unfortunately, as is the case with most sequels, not quite as good as the original. It also sort-of contradicts the original tale, which took place in Chicago, by moving it to New Orleans, although this is explained by saying that many cities have their own Candyman myth. If you liked the original, you should also like this one. Tony Todd is as menacing as ever, and it's good to see that his character has ditched the dodgy furry jacket in this film. The film also benefits from the inclusion of cult movie actress Veronica Cartwright, who plays Annie's mother.
One question which troubles me with this film though, is seeing that the Candyman is black, how come all his descendants were white, including his illegitimate daughter Caroline? A bit strange don't you think? Anyway, check it out!
