grad student helen and bernie be gather information for their master thesis concern urban legend when helen run across the tale of candyman and a demon who can be conjure by say his name five time in front of a mirror . further research lead helen to cabrini green and a frightening ghetto project where everyone not only know about candyman but believe in him and and fear him . helen do not believe in the legend of candyman and until candyman come look for her . when bernie be brutally murder and a baby go miss from the project and helen be arrest and have be find at the scene of both crime and cover in blood and wield a weapon . no one believe her claim and that it be candyman who commit the crime . but candyman offer her a bargain represent her life in exchange for the baby and who be still alive . cruelly abandon by her cheat jerk of a husband and pursue by the police and helen return to the project for a final showdown with candyman . base on clive barker short story the forbidden and candyman be a combination of the bloody mary legend and the guy fawkes celebration and the phantom of the opera . virginia madsen a helen be beautiful and tragic and also damn scary when she want to be . tony todd a candyman be both horrific and tragic and evoke true and dark and gothic horror whenever he appear on the screen . this be a stunningly original film and heavy with dread and never once go in for cheap scare . the acting be flawless and the musical score be creepy a hell and fill with ghostly organ music which set just the right tone of sadness and fear . the setting of cabrini green be frighteningly convince it a scary enough place without candyman and fill with hopelessness and the constant threat of death . the violence be brutal and bloody and so be warn . this be not your typical teenage slasher film . anyone with an appreciation for urban myth and legend and and for clive barker excellent morbid imagination should not miss this film . it be a genuinely dark and move tale of love and blood and horror and boasting realistic and three dimensional character instead of the usual one dimensional meat puppet for the horror grinder . see it at least once .