Author Topic: I've seen Candy  (Read 5978 times)

Offline Penthesilea

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I've seen Candy
« on: September 30, 2006, 04:16:28 pm »
Yesterday I saw Candy in theatre. Before I'll say something about the movie itself, I have to say that I was  puzzled and displeased by the release politics.
The first week of release it was played in only two cinemas in my wider region (and there are forty of them), but at least every day and at regular times. The second week it is played only in one (!) cinema, only three times the week and at the ungodly hour of 11pm. Frustrating.

Short notice for those who don't want to know anything about the movie: it's well worth seeing it. Go and see it, I highly recommend it. It is intense and moving.
And now stop reading.

************************************************************************
No plot spoilers, but from here on, you get to know something more about the movie and the characters
***********************************************************************


Candy is very intense. It's a love-story and junkie-drama. On one side it doesn't show us anything we haven't known/seen before on this topic. But most drug-dramas are too deliberate, too blatant in showing how bad drugs are. The audience is beaten over the head with the simple morale "drugs are bad and dangerous".  Not with Candy.

Somehow the reviewers on IMDB have another impression by it. Most of them claim it to be THE movie to be shown to young audiences in aim too keep youngsters from using/trying drugs (or something along these lines). I can't agree with that. But maybe this is caused by my own experiences.

On the love-story theme and the characters: awwww, they are so sweet! Their love is the counterpart to their addiction. It is not all rosy and happy (obviously) but they are just lovable together.
I love the character of Dan. Despite all his faults, he loves Candy dearly and is such a sweet and witty guy. And I guess it helps that he looks like Heath, lol  ;D
Candy is a bit more "rattier" (the word is not exactly what I mean, therefore the quotation marks), I think she can have a sharp tongue with people who are not to her gusto. And there's something about her we never get to know, some sense of previous drama.

The acting:
Do I have to say something about Heath? Guess I don't :)  He's great, he is Dan all the time. Maybe my vision is a bit blurred by my partiality for Heath and the fact that in this movie he looks more like himself than in BBM, but I don't think so.
And Abbie Cornish is just as astonishing as Heath. You can see everything in her face.

The movie is open in many aspects, what I like in movies. But in two aspects I believe it to be a flaw. The first one: Candy's relationship to her mother is distant and difficult. In one scene, Candy accuses her mother of having destroyed her live. But we never come to know if in fact something has happened, or why their relationship is as it is. Not even clues in that question.
The second one I won't tell you, because it would be a spoiler. If anyone wants to know (or has already seen Candy), you can pm me.

At the beginning, the shaky hand-held camera drove me nuts. But either it stopped or I was so much into the movie that I didn't notice it any more.

***Minor spoiler, but I think you have already heard about it***

The miscarriage scene is really, really hard to watch. It is not disgusting or drastic in the sense of bloody (you see something, but nothing too bad). But it is the characters reactions, their feelings, their black despair (and the fact that it is so superbly acted by Heath and Abby) that makes it hard to bear.

Offline Katie77

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #1 on: September 30, 2006, 06:55:45 pm »
Gee, I am in australia and I havent seen it yet, because I live in a regional area, and it hasnt hit our cinemas yet....I'm actually expecting it to come out on dvd before it hits our local theatres....

I am looking forward to it, because most of the australian actors are well know to us here, plus to see the spots where it was filmed in Sydney.  We dont get a chance to see all that too often.

Thanks for the review.......
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It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfection

Offline MaineWriter

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #2 on: September 30, 2006, 07:02:06 pm »
SPOILER....



Pent...

I heard the miscarriage scene was harrowing. I also heard that it was harrowing for Heath to film because Michelle was early in her pregnancy at the time.

L
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Offline Mikaela

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #3 on: September 30, 2006, 07:16:57 pm »
Thank you for the review! Gives a good flavour of the emotions it invoked. Makes me even more intent on seeing it. Harrowing, challenging and quite disturbing though it sounds. Good acting and believable 3-D characters and challenging storylines (and Heath, showing actual movie chemistry with an actress...) sure don't come around every day.


I'd wish they'd come around sometime soon where I live too. But the official Film site still states that the premiere date  "Remains To Be Set".

*grumbles*

All the more interestedly and eagerly will I be reading others' reviews, like yours - as they/you get to see it.  :)

Offline Penthesilea

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #4 on: September 30, 2006, 07:29:02 pm »
SPOILER....



Pent...

I heard the miscarriage scene was harrowing. I also heard that it was harrowing for Heath to film because Michelle was early in her pregnancy at the time.

L



***SPOILER***



Yes, it's harrowing. That's what I wanted to express by saying "really, really hard to watch".
And I can absolutely understand that it was harrowing for Heath to film it.
They actually filmed more (and even more harrowing, more detailed) than what we see in the movie.

yb

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #5 on: September 30, 2006, 09:04:36 pm »
My memory of Candy has blurred a bit because I saw it back in April.  It is a very intense film, I was kind of at a loss following the story at the beginning but then I quickly settled down and was absorbed into the film.   It's the kind of film that I usually have no interest because of the subject matter but I went anyway because of Heath, and it turned out that I loved the film very much and all actors/actresses in it; of course Heath is definitely marvellous in it.

I agree that the miscarriage scene is hard to watch, and I found out afterwards that Heath and Michelle just knew that they're going to have Matilda not long before this scene was shot.  Heath was reluctant to shoot this, you know how this thing would play on people's mind so Heath had to call Michelle in between the takes to make sure Michelle was okay and told her that he loves her.

Penthesilea, what do you think about Heath's narration?  It's mesmorizing and I hoped he had done more in it.

Offline Penthesilea

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #6 on: October 02, 2006, 04:51:50 pm »
Penthesilea, what do you think about Heath's narration?  It's mesmorizing and I hoped he had done more in it.

*sigh* and *lol*

*sigh* because I've only seen it dubbed in German. It's hard to find OVs in theatres in Germany, and Candy is barely shown anyhow, let alone the OV.

*lol* because just a few minutes into the movie I leaned over to my friend and whispered: "Imagine this narration with Heath's original voice. Bet we'd already be melting and would be short of swooning."
I can imagine it to be mesmerizing in OV.


yb

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #7 on: October 03, 2006, 05:13:19 am »
*sigh* and *lol*

*sigh* because I've only seen it dubbed in German.


Oh, sorry, I didn't know you're from Germany.  IMO, his narration in Candy is even better than in Ned Kelly - haunting and hypnotizing. 

Offline Katie77

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #8 on: October 03, 2006, 07:03:26 am »
Oh, sorry, I didn't know you're from Germany.  IMO, his narration in Candy is even better than in Ned Kelly - haunting and hypnotizing. 

Just a bit of trivia, seeing as you mentioned Ned Kelly.....did you knw there was an earlier version of Ned Kelly made here in Austrlia, in the 70's.....and in the lead role of Ned Kelly was Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones......

I remember when i mentioned this way long ago on the Yahoo board, it caused a few people to throw up......
Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect.

It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfection

yb

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #9 on: October 03, 2006, 07:18:50 am »
Just a bit of trivia, seeing as you mentioned Ned Kelly.....did you knw there was an earlier version of Ned Kelly made here in Austrlia, in the 70's.....and in the lead role of Ned Kelly was Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones......

I remember when i mentioned this way long ago on the Yahoo board, it caused a few people to throw up......

No, I didn't know that, it's only after I became addicted to Heath than I knew about this movie.  Mick Jagger?  What a contrast?  But if Mick Jagger also wore the same big beard as Heath in Ned Kelly, there wouldn't have been much difference lookwise. LOL.

BTW, back to Candy, do you know Australia will release the DVD in November?


Offline Katie77

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #10 on: October 03, 2006, 05:32:21 pm »

BTW, back to Candy, do you know Australia will release the DVD in November?



No, I didnt know that, but I assumed it would be released sometime before the end of the year....the movie never got to our regional town, and I have always thought i would see the dvd before it came here.
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Offline Katie77

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #11 on: December 06, 2006, 09:25:07 pm »
I got the DVD last night, and watched this movie......

I would not have usually watched a drug themed movie, but only wathced it because Heath was in it....

Firstly, being a bit naeve about the drug scene, it did open my eyes to how it infiltrates into peoples lives....as a parent, I felt very much for the Candy's mum and dad.

The fact that the story is true, makes it all the better, and I am definately going to find the book and read  it, and hopefully, it will give me more detail....Unfortunately, I havent read much about the author, so am not aware of where his life went after "Candy", but I am interested to find out....There is probably another story there too.

I know first hand, of the reality of this movie.....some friends of mine have a daughter who could have been "Candy"......she got caught up in the heroin scene, which led to prostitution, stealing, and any other way of getting funds to feed her habit....she eventually sought rehab, and during that rehab, she found religion, as well as her future husband....She has since gone on to marry, have three kids, and wrote a book on her experiences....this has led to her doing extensive travel to promote her book, and do public speaking on her life and recovery.

Even though I had read her book, and had many discussions with her parents about her, I still couldnt imagine the type of life she led, but watching the characters in this movie, has painted the picture very clearly.

Heath's performance is brilliant.....I know I am biased, and would love him in anything, but I did think that he showed in his own way, a special kind of love for Candy.

Couldnt help look for similarities and mannerisms that I am so accustomed to from Brokeback......I seemed to zone in on his hands quite a bit, compared the love scenes, had a chuckle about him talking about selling himself to gay men, and loved the glimpse of his butt in one of the love scenes.

Tonight in Australia are the AFI (Australian Film Industry) Awards....Heath is out here because he is nominated for an award as best actor in Candy, as is Amy Cornish, it will be interesting to see if he wins.  He is also a presenter, so I am looking forward to watching it on tv tonight. Dont know if Geoffrey Rush is nominated, but he should be, he is just one of the best actors around.

As an Aussie, I am so proud to see Heath come back and make such a good movie here....

Oh yeah, something else I noticed, in the credits........Heath's assistant.....Noel Bell, or Nigel Bell (not sure on the first name)......I remember someone writing way way back about this bloke.....he was Heath's assistant on Brokeback too.....does anyone remember the story about him?

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Offline MaineWriter

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #12 on: December 06, 2006, 10:16:02 pm »
I saw Candy down in Boston last Saturday. It will have a limited release in the US.

My capsule review:

Heath is good. Abby Cornish is good. The subject is depressing. Has anyone ever made a heroin movie that is not depressing?

If you are looking for a scenic view of Australia, for perhaps future travels, this is not it.

L
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Offline Katie77

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Re: I've seen Candy
« Reply #13 on: December 06, 2006, 10:20:46 pm »

If you are looking for a scenic view of Australia, for perhaps future travels, this is not it.

L

Yes, Leslie, that was disappointing.......gee, i lived in Sydney 30 odd years and I didnt recognise any place in the movie.......I guess its the part we dont want to see.....

Except for the number plates and drivers licence, and money, there wasnt much of Australia familiar.......
Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect.

It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfection