The Candy Snatchers – Vinegar Syndrome (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, June 1973
Director: Guerdon Trueblood
Writers: Bryan Gindoff, Guerdon Trueblood
Cast: Tiffany Bolling, Ben Piazza, Susan Sennett, Brad David, Vince Martorano

Release Date: February 25th, 2020
Approximate running time: 94 Minutes 43 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Both Versions)
Rating: R
Sound: DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $32.98

"Candy, a teenage heiress to a large fortune, is kidnapped by a trio of small time criminals on her way home from Catholic school. After burying her alive in an unmarked grave, the trio attempts to extort Candy's father, a wealthy jeweler, for a hefty ransom. But, what seemed like a simple, straightforward kidnapping soon spirals out of control with violent consequences and Candy's only hope for survival is a young mute boy who knows where she is buried." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, "Newly scanned & restored in 4k from its 35mm original camera negative."

The Candy Snatchers comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray. 

Disc Size: 34.9 GB

Feature: 26.7 GB

The source looks excellent; this is easily the best The Candy Snatchers has ever looked. Flesh tones are healthy, colors are nicely saturated, and the image always looks organic. Also, image clarity, contrast, black levels, and compression are solid.

The Candy Snatchers comes of a dual layer DVD.

Disc Size: 6 GB

Audio: 5/5

This release comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English with removable English SDH. The audio is in excellent shape; dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced and robust when it should.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a promotional still and archival article gallery with music from the film playing in the background, an interview with producer Gary Adelman titled Digging up the Past (9 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English SDH), an interview with actor Vince Martorano titled Snatching the Role (10 minutes 55 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English SDH), an interview with director Guerdon Trueblood titled A Dark Film (15 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English SDH), an introduction by Guerdon Trueblood (1 minute 24 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English SDH), and an audio commentary with film historian Nathaniel Thompson.

Included with this release is a DVD that has the same content as the Blu-ray included as part of this combo release.

Other extras include reversible cover art.

Summary:

Three kidnappers abduct a girl named Candy Phillips on her way home from school. They hide her away in a hole in the ground while they wait for her father to pay their ransom demands. When her father doesn't show up or pay the ransom, the kidnappers must come up with a new plan.

The Candy Snatchers is a brutal crime caper that failed to connect with an audience upon its initial theatrical release. It nearly faded into obscurity until Subversive Cinema released it on DVD in 2005. Subversive Cinema found the camera negative just in time before it was discarded, making their release significant.

The most surprising aspect of The Candy Snatchers is how it was directed by a first-time director named Guerdon Trueblood. His direction is never showy or overly stylized, as he focuses most of his attention on letting the actors develop their characters. That said, despite his solid direction, The Candy Snatchers was Guerdon Trueblood's one and only feature film as a director.

Immediately, one has to feel sorry for actress Susan Sennett, who plays Candy, as her character spends most of the film blindfolded, and in her interview, she explains how they made her keep it on in between takes for continuity. Her screams of despair will send chills up your spine, as they at times feel almost too realistic.

When it comes to the three kidnappers, they have three distinctive personalities. Jessie, the ring leader, is only in it for the money; her psychotic brother Alan is along for the ride; and Eddy starts to regret his actions the further they get away from their original plan. The actor who plays the little boy with autism, Christopher Trueblood, the director's son, does a pretty good job. That said, it was a bold move to have a character with autism in the 1970s.

Most of the characters in The Candy Snatchers are hard to sympathize with; only Candy and Shawn, the boy with autism, exude sympathy. Also, there are an ample amount of double dealings and twists, which ensure there is never a dull moment. And an unforgettable bleak finale is built through the perfectly constructed tension-filled narrative, which does an excellent job of maintaining momentum. Ultimately, The Candy Snatchers has many moments that push the envelope, despite not being as violent as The Last House on the Left, another grindhouse film released around the same time.

The Candy Snatchers gets an exceptional release from Vinegar Syndrome that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and informative extras, highly recommended.

 Written by Michael Den Boer