Video Review: Mandy Moore “Candy”

A paperboy throws a newspaper on the driveway of a house. An ice cream truck stops at the curb next door while children runs towards it. A couple of houses away, a young girl swings. Across the street, Mandy Moore looks outside the window from her upstairs bedroom.

She changes outfits several times: a pink top with black pants, a red tank top with black pants and a yellow tank top (with the red top layered underneath) and a long, emerald green skirt. She has headphones on and a CD player attached to her hip. A goldfish swims in a bowl.

In the mirror, she fluffs up her hair but scrunches up her nose. Outside on her lawn, her friends call out to her. She waves at them and gives herself one last look in the mirror.

She leaves her house and they all take her car. A guy does a flip on the skateboard. A guy, slams his skateboard on his ground while his motorcycle is next to him. He recognizes her car and gets up, wanting a better look. She notices and can’t believe it.

He and his friends decide to follow her.

Her friends decide to eat at Cadillac Jack’s, a 50s themed restaurant. Her friend puts a coin in the jukebox and chooses a song. Meanwhile, her crush walks in, holding his skateboard. She sees him walk in from their table and bites her lip. They sit at the counter to eat. The server takes their order.

Back at Moore’s table, the server gives them their drinks and she sips from her water. Excited, she tells her friends that he’s here. He sees her and nods hello to her. They dance at the table. As she walks to the bathroom, she passes by and they stare at each other.

After eating, she and her friends decide to dance in the parking. He and his friends stop eating and step outside to watch them. She finishes the routine and meets him at his motorcycle. He gives her a ride to the skate park.

At the skate park, the guys do laps around the girls as they dance. Once they stop dancing, they watch them do tricks. She points out the amazing trick her now boyfriend just did to her friend. She claps for him.

In the center of the skate park, the girls stand in a group and gather together.


Rating: 3.5/5

She’s the typical 16-year-old girl who second guesses her clothing choices, worries if her hair is out of place, and pines for the hot guy who lives a block away from her. Her popularity isn’t really mentioned. From the first impressions, though, she seems to be the type who is popular but is more of friends with everybody type.

She likes her guys ahead of the curve. Her boyfriend loves to hang out at the skate park and perform tricks. He may be popular but he’s not interested in playing football or basketball at his school. He’s more inspired by Tony Hawk. It’s a bonus that the guy doesn’t look the stereotype. It fleshes out his character and makes him different.

While it may have been overlooked back in the late 90s, Moore’s age-approriate video is the day in the life of a teenager, without too much wish fulfillment and manages to pick up on the skateboarding trend a few years before Avril Lavigne latched onto it.

Director: Chris Robinson  Year: 1999



Pam Avoledo Administrator


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