CANDY LAND (2023) Slasher horror thriller - now with trailer
CANDY LAND (2023) Slasher horror thriller – now with trailer
Candy Land is a 2023 American slasher horror thriller set in the underground sleazy world of truck stop sex workers aka “lot lizards.”
Written, co-produced and directed by John Swab (Ida Red; Body Brokers; Run with the Hunted; Let Me Make You a Martyr). Also produced by Jeremy M. Rosen (Ida Red) with Robert Ogden Barnum and Michael Reiser serving as executive producers.
Plot synopsis:
Remy…
Without really spoiling things, here’s somewhat of a set up cause without it I feel like I’d be talking about something hard to explain otherwise.
There a pandemic of sorts going on (notes mainly by the mask commentary) and Blake (Sam Quartin) and Cole (Max Masen) are a duo, who are seen as folks of the vigilante variety, but instead of taking the law into their own hands, they’ve taken on vital medication distribution. Bobby (Nekhebet Kum Juch) is their “mute” sidekick, who’s just hanging out in the getaway car. During a raid of a pharmacy, they come across Luke who attempted to run from the bust, but gets caught. Sam forces Luke to switch clothes with her before letting him go. At the doctor’s office Sam and Cole get their mission on where to take the pills they’ve acquired. Sam ends up leaving Cole at the doctor’s office, claiming she’ll be back for him cause the trip shouldn’t take too long. Eventually her and Bobby find Luke from a prescription he left in his pants pocket, the ones she stole. All of this leads the three of them on a wild adventure so to speak.
This is a weird one y’all. Definitely felt like they were setting up an dramic acid trip that they tried to make poetic and cool and hella trippy, but from a viewers point of view it just wasn’t good to watch. Everyone’s doing drugs and partying at the time and living by their own rules and unfortunately I wasn’t strapped to the edge of my seat wanting to watch the spiral enough, for that to be engaging. (Some drug movies/stories are captivating and wild and they grip people enough for them to want to fall down that rabbit hole with the characters.) I’m not saying that it was boring, but I watched this movie in 2 maybe 3 parts mainly because there was nothing that made me want to push further with it. That is, outside of just remembering to finish it. Yeah there were some interesting moments, but none of them lasting long enough to hold the movie together. Honestly Bobby was the most interesting one, she may not have verbally spoke, but she said a lot in other ways.
On another note, this is another movie that is categorized in the romance section and although there is a semi-lustful element, I question that notion quite a bit. All the things that made it a “romance” felt like they happened out of nowhere, but still they felt planted in a way. There was little that made me realistically believe things would take place the way that they did, though unassuming looks can be deceiving. I guess I need moments of actual desire or something in that vein, and not just product placement, for me to begin the process of believing a “romance” is going to be a thing here. It’s not that I didn’t know it would take place at some point simply because someone called it a romance, I’m just saying that if it is to be somewhat categorized in the romantic category at all, please do more to get us on board that train.
Again it was weird and slightly trippy, but not in a supper engaging way and ultimately at the end, although surprising, I was left with an eh feeling. Honestly you’ll feel the the sober person watching another sober person who thinks they’re having a trip, but you never tell them to stand up in the kiddie pool.
Fun Note: The is the second movie I’ve personally watched where they’ve prominently quoted ‘Tyger (The Tiger)’ by William Blake, the first I believe was The Dangerous Lives Of The Alter Boys.
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Bonus Thoughts, May or May Not Contain Spoilers....
Did any of y’all watch Wrist Cutters A Love Story with Patrick Fugit? Well if you did, do you think Tyger Tyger gave off similar vibes, but in a worse way? I happen to really like Wrist Cutters (may one day do a post about it) and although it gave me similar vibes between like the two towns and everything, Tyger just wasn’t anywhere as good in my opinion.
I’m not saying that the acting wasn’t good, but there seems to be a pattern of putting Dyan Sprouse in movies where he is the romantic interest and the build up just isn’t there. The body was there this time for sure, they just need to get someone who actually seems interested in the work lol.
