Candyman (1992) | Redlining, Urban Planning, and the Boogeyman

Red Rose Film Club

Spooky season continues with Bernard Rose's 1992 film Candyman. There's a lot to discuss! Hal and Craig break down how Candyman inverts the racist trope of the "savage brute". In addition, we look at Candyman's deft analysis of Chicago's Cabrini Green housing projects and how Candyman himself is a creation of White America whose pain tends to reverberate mostly in black communities. Discussions also include:

• Craig consoling himself after a disastrous baseball postseason from his beloved Tampa Bay Rays;

• Hal and Craig's recent concert experiences (Beyonce, and Run the Jewels, respectively);

• Tony Todd's ability to pull of terrifying and sexy at the same time; and

• Hal's slate of recent viewings: Saw X and Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.

Sources and Links:

• https://time.com/6092375/candyman-cabrini-green-true-story/

• https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/17/realestate/what-is-redlining.htm

• "The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America" by Richard Rothstein

• "American Apartheid: Segregation and the Making of the Underclass" by Douglas Massey and Nancy Denton

• "The Truly Disadvantaged" by William Julius Wilson