Bad Candy – Movie Review (2/5)

BAD CANDY is a new Halloween horror anthology. This one is being released way ahead of the spooky season, which is probably smart. Unfortunately, it really didn’t have many stories that worked for me. Read our full Bad Candy horror anthology review here!

BAD CANDY is a new horror anthology set during the night of Halloween. I love horror anthologies and tend to be a sucker for Halloween-themed movies. This one just did not do much for me.

DO CHECK OUT

Our tag for “short film” which features many anthologies >

However, I know we all need to watch something new every now and then, so go ahead and check it out. Just expect many familiar stories, subpar acting (in a few too many cases), and low production quality. Fortunately, you can also expect to see some cool animatronics, a few good stories, and some solid acting. Yeah, it’s a mixed bag of Halloween candy with this one.

Continue reading our Bad Candy horror anthology review below.

The tradition of a Halloween horror anthology

Bad Candy should be right up the alley of our beloved Trick ‘r Treat from 2007. It’s actually a Halloween tradition for us here at Heaven of Horror to watch that one every single year on October 31st. This new Halloween horror anthology is both different and eerily similar to the iconic Halloween anthology.

Unfortunately, I can’t say I’ll be watching this new one as a tradition. In fact, I don’t plan on ever watching it again. Then again, I do have to recognize that the budget is clearly lower and the cast is full of fewer familiar faces.

However, the lower budget does come across as low production quality at times, which is never good.

The passion of the filmmakers is obvious, but the acting is cringe-worthy at times and the stories are scary for all the wrong reasons. Very early on while watching Bad Candy, I felt like I was watching a Trick ‘r Treat knock-off. Not a spoof or a tribute, but just a copy of much lower quality.

A few familiar names do not a movie make

In general, many scenes in the movie feature elements you’ve seen in other big horror hits. As such, it really is just a rehash of things you’ve seen before. I’m sorry to say that I was simply disappointed with this one.

If you want more Halloween horror anthologies, I’d go with the 2015 movie Tales of Halloween instead. One of the stories stars Gracie Gillam who is awesome in the recent Shudder release Superhost. She is more than enough reason to check out that particular horror movie.

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Our review of the Shudder horror movie Superhost right here >

And sure, Corey Taylor (from Slipknot) is in Bad Candy but that really doesn’t make much difference to me. He’s cool as the radio host telling the stories, we see. But it doesn’t matter much when the stories aren’t better – with exceptions, of course.

Also, the star of the Gremlins movies, Zach Galligan, is the producer of the said radio show. However, he’s virtually unrecognizable, and only by listening to his voice, did I realize it was him. And, again, bringing in a few familiar names or faces (which are then not easy to recognize) makes no difference if the stories don’t work.

You can watch Bad Candy in select theaters and On-Demand

Bad Candy was co-directed by Scott B. Hansen and Desiree Connell who also wrote the screenplay. Also, Thacker Hoffman is credited for having written the short story it’s based on. This is the feature film debut as a writer and director for Desiree Connell who previously worked more in production.

Scott B. Hansen previously directed and co-wrote the 2016 horror movie The Possession Experiment which holds a 3.6 rating on IMDb. That might be a bit harsh, but there is something about the quality of this latest movie as well that just does not hold up. You can read more about The Possession Experiment and watch the trailer here >

I was really looking forward to a new Halloween horror anthology so I was disappointed that this wasn’t my kind of thing. If they’d gone all-in on being camp and embraced the low budget and craziness, then I would have enjoyed it more. As it stands now, I can’t say I enjoyed it much. Even if a few of the short stories did work better than others!

Bad Candy is out in Select Theaters on September 10, 2021. Also, it will be on VOD from September 14 and on Blu-ray from October 12, 2021.

Details

Directors: Scott B Hansen & Desiree Connell
Writers: Desiree Connel & Scott B Hansen
Stars: Zach Galligan, Derek Russo, Corey Taylor

Plot

On Halloween night in New Salem, Radio DJs Chilly Billy (Corey Taylor) and Paul (Zach Galligan) tell a twisted anthology of terrifying local myths. Residents of the small-town experience horrifying paranormal encounters that lead them to a grim end.