Candy (2006)

A poet falls in love with an art student who gravitates to his bohemian lifestyle -- and his love of heroin. Hooked as much on one another as they are on the drug, their relationship alternates between states of oblivion, self-destruction, and despair.

Director:

Neil Armfield

Writers:

Luke Davies (novel), Neil Armfield (screenplay)

Stars:

Heath Ledger, Abbie Cornish, Geoffrey Rush

6 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Abbie Cornish	...	Candy
Heath Ledger	...	Dan
Geoffrey Rush	...	Casper
Tom Budge	...	Schumann
Roberto Meza Mont	...	Jorge
Tony Martin	...	Mr. Wyatt
Noni Hazlehurst	...	Mrs. Wyatt
Holly Austin	...	Sunglasses Shop Assistant
Craig Moraghan	...	Washing Machine Dealer
John Lee	...	Hock Shop Man
Noel Herriman	...	Celebrant
Tim McKenzie	...	Uncle Rod
Tara Morice	...	Aunt Katherine
Maddi Newling	...	Janey
Patricia Lemon	...	Wedding Guest

Storyline

This story is a narration from an Australian man who falls in love with two kinds of Candy: a woman of the same name and heroin. The narrator changes from a smart-aleck to someone trying to find a vein to inject, while Candy changes from an actress, call girl, streetwalker, and then a madwoman. Starting in Sydney, the two eventually end up in Melbourne to go clean, but they fail. This leads them to turn to finding money and heroin, while other posessions and attachments become unimportant.

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Plot Keywords:

sex in a bathroom | prostitute | miniskirt | sex in a car | sex in the backseat of a car | 

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Taglines:

Love is a high you can never come down from

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive depiction of drug addiction, disturbing images, language, sexual content and nudity

Details

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 May 2006 (Australia)

Also Known As:

Candy - Reise der Engel

Filming Locations:

Hillsdale, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$202,744 (Australia), 26 May 2006, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,646, 19 November 2006, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$44,720, 4 February 2007

Company Credits

Production Co:

Film Finance,Paradigm Hyde Films,Renaissance Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min (uncut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In an interview, Heath Ledger discussed using his own cigarette addiction as a means to understand heroin addiction for this film.

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Goofs

When Dan is sitting in the shower, the tattoo (which was real and was blacked out for some reason - it is actually a cluster of planets) on his shoulder smudges and transfers to the shower tile. The next scene it is intact.

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Quotes

Dan: The world is very bewildering to a junkie.

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Connections

References Catch Me If You Can (2002)

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Soundtracks

White Rabbit's Funeral
Originally composed by Paul Charlier for DV8 Physical Theatre's "Cost of Living" directed by Lloyd Newson
Courtesy of DV8 Physical Theatre

User Reviews

Bittersweet romance under the shadow of smack

Saw Candy - wonderful performances from a marvellous cast. Beautifully shot etc. One thing did strike me as being strange -- the casting of Noni Hazlehurst as the Mum who harangues her daughter and fails to comprehend her choices. This actress is well-known (in Oz, anyway) for her brilliant portrayal twenty years ago as a junkie in "Monkey Grip". So, casting her in this diametrically opposed role did not serve the movie well *at all* I found it so distracting, and completely at odds with the purpose of the casting, that it did my head in!

Another quibble -- a truly hilarious scene from the novel, where Dan tries to rob a bank, was not in the movie. Too bad. Armfield also changed what happened to Geoffrey Rush's character, which was interesting to observe. In the movie he gives him a much more poetic trajectory.

Otherwise Candy is an excellent druggy pic and love story and definitely worth seeing if you don't remember Christiane F etc