“A chilling tale of family, dark art, obsession, and heavy metal!”

During the 2015 midnight madness portion of the Toronto International Film Festival, several films were screened that quickly became favorites among horror fans.  Among these are titles such as The Final Girls, Green Room, and the anthology film Southbound.  On September 13, one of these screenings really stuck out as a soon to be classic.  That film is known as The Devil’s Candy.  Written and directed by Sean Byrne (The Loved Ones) in his sophomore feature, it was somewhat under the radar until horror distributer powerhouse IFC Midnight released it in March of 2017.  Soon after, the film was a hot topic of discussion among social media as a “MUST SEE”!

THE PLOT

Jesse (Ethan Embry) has three passions in his life…his family, his art, and heavy metal.  Although he struggles to make it as a successful artist, he’s determined to make it work.  When presented with the opportunity to buy their dream home in rural Texas, Jesse along with his wife Astrid (Shiri Appleby), and young teen daughter Zooey (Kiara Glasco) enthusiastically make the move.  Not only is it a great deal, but along with the house is a huge storage building that is perfect for Jesse’s art studio.  As an added (and unpleasant) bonus, the house also comes with a dark and sinister past.

As the family gets settled in and tries to adjust to this new way of life, they are visited by the former home owners’ troubled son Ray (Pruitt Taylor Vince).  Ray’s disturbing demeanor seems to be linked with the house and the land around it, and all he wants is to come back home.  After he is turned away by Jesse, the “dark forces” inhabiting the home seem to take hold of Jesse as well, and it really starts to show through his artwork.  As the days go on, Ray’s behavior increases and his true intensions reveal themselves in a dark and disturbing way.  Now, Jesse must overcome his own “demons” and do whatever he must to protect his family as well as himself.

SHOULD YOU SEE IT?

I must admit, I wasn’t too sure what to expect when going into this one.  I DID know one thing, and that was that IFC Midnight has been killing it lately with their releases!  The social media buzz on this movie was nothing but positive and that was enough to peak my interest.  Needless to say, I LOVED this one!

It’s more than just a horror film.  It’s a very touching and dramatic rollercoaster of a thriller that never lets up.  The acting is superb all around, especially from the lead Ethan Embry.  His portrayal as a loving and protective husband and father is very convincing, and the chemistry with his co-stars is top notch.  The cinematography made the overall tone of the movie that much more disturbing and really added to the story.  To top it off, and one of the highlights of the film, is the soundtrack.  Metal, metal, and more metal!  The multiple nods to Metallica (my favorite band) were a nice bonus as well.  Over all, it’s a great movie and shouldn’t be missed.  The perfect blend of horror and metal!