Candy

by Chris

The 1960’s, depending on how one looks at it, was either an ambitious or desperate time for filmmaking. TV was taking a huge chunk of the film-going audience and was starting to make shows with nearly the same look, feel, budgets, effects, etc, the movies had. Plus the late teen/young adult audience that Disney couldn't satisfy were starting their own youth culture away from the mainstream and how the heck could Hollywood get into that while still trying to appeal to a wider audience?

With those two ideas in mind, enter Candy, a big budget comedy on sex and society. I fully believe that everyone's intentions here were good. The studio that made Candy was probably hoping for a sexy hit comedy with young adult appeal like Casino Royale or maybe Bedazzled. So why not just get a talented screenwriter like Buck Henry to adapt a novel by Terry Southern (who helped write the script for Casino Royale) and stick a bunch of famous stars in it? Madcap fun for everyone and their mother right? Wrong. The end result? If you wanna be kind - an inspired mess with a weird, thought provoking ending. If not - an incoherent mess with an ending that turns most people off. Either way, this film is enjoyable but does shoot itself in the foot early and quite often.

Okay let's get to the plot. Candy Christian (Ewa Aulin) basically has some anarchic misadventures while searching for her father (John Astin). Most of the misadventures she gets into mainly involve her getting fondled by various men of society like poet/artiste MacPhisto (Richard Burton), a doctor (James Coburn) and later an actual East Indian Guru (Marlon Brando.) It seems Candy is the Little Red Riding Hood that brings out the Big Bad Wolf in 'em. For what's it worth, Candy is a firm believer in "giving" to whatever she’s needed for. However, Candy does spend most of the film in a near daze wondering what’s come over these men and why they want her so bad.

Candy has big problems. The first being that they got a first time director. Actor Christian Marquand had directed nothing previously (and only one film since) and it shows in his work here. Second problem is the casting. If you thought Sylvia Kristel's acting skills were "minimal" you will think even less of Ewa Aulin. The most honest line in this film would have to be when Ewa tells somebody: "I don't know anything about acting." However, Ewa's problem is a little different. Like Kristel, Aulin basically has to play an "innocent/naive/ingenue" type character in this film and so she obviously has to play dumb. She's also supposed to represent the innocence of American youth. The thing here is her accent is showing. Imagine a film with Alicia Silverstone's voice done by Zsa Zsa Gabor and you'll understand my frustration. Just as bad Ringo Starr shouldn't be playing a Mexican gardener (named 'Emmanuel' no less!)

The third is Candy is pretty flaky with its plot points. Candy quickly forgets Dad after a hospital visit and just wanders around NYC trying to escape some cops (who disappear for the most of the movie but manage to follow her all the way out to the California desert at the end!) Okay, so Candy sinks fast but it does try its best before totally going under. All the big stars ham it up and it works. Burton and Brando are particularly over the top and funny. John Astin is great in a dual role as Candy's conservative pop and his swingin' brother. The film is long (124 minutes) but doesn't feel that way.Let's get to the sex part. Ewa Aulin plays the "ingenue" as best she can. She's hot and frequently scantily clad or naked but the sexual heat is minor. If you want real heat from her (in a much better film) you're better off renting Start The Revolution Without Me. Even funnier, most of the guys who wanna do the nasty with Candy usually try to do it with their clothes on (and it can't get anymore softcore than that huh?:)

The main reason I'm reviewing this film for Softcore Reviews is because it really does try to comment on sex and society. To do that in a big budget American film with big stars in it (even during the 1960's) is obviously no walk in the park. Hypocrisy from both sides of the American lifestyle spectrum (conservative and liberal) are on full display here. Both sides spout a lot of noble philosophy (Astin and Matthau for the right, Brando and Coburn for the left) but both sides ultimately just want to spend a night in Candy's underwear. Even Candy really isn't all that innocent as she mocks Richard Burton's character at the beginning. Nearly every review I've read of Candy describes her as a nymphomaniac but they really miss the point. Everyone in Candy is a nympho. Supposedly the movie is also Southern's take on the book and film Lolita. So in essence this film is a Freudian wet dream.

Terry Southern obviously likes writing dark comedies about society (see his work in Dr. Strangelove, The Loved One, The Magic Christian and Easy Rider for further proof). Terry and co-writer Mason Hoffenberg and scriptwriter Buck Henry wanted to make a comment on the current climate of social morality with Candy and the points they make are there if you look for them. However the execution of the points mainly fall flat. And if you thought the points Southern was trying to make were confusing then you've obviously never seen the film he scripted after this one - Barbarella.

The only way this film would've really worked was with a more experienced director and lead actress. As a side note 1960's rock legends The Byrds and Steppenwolf contribute songs to the soundtrack (most notable is Steppenwolf’s hit "Magic Carpet Ride". However both bands and Terry Southern would fare much better later in the now classic Easy Rider.) The New York Daily News called this film "The ultimate dirty movie", and and you'll probably see their point when Candy finally reunites with her father at the end. This film is still a huge 1960's Art-Pop mess from a decade that was filled with them. Candy certainly isn't as good as Bedazzled, The Magic Christian, Dr. Strangelove, The Loved One or even Barbarella. Still, if you're in a strange, funny mood and looking for a film to match it this may be just what you're looking for.