Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy

Overview | Cast and Characters | Trivia | Transcript | Soundtrack Lyrics
TV/Radio Interviews | Print Articles | Other Text | Reviews | Images
Dedicated Links

Overview

Movie Box Overview: "Ever wonder what it would be like to "have a nice day" each and every day for the rest of your life? Find the answer - and plenty of laughs - in Brain Candy, the hysterically funny film debut from TV's acclaimed comedy troupe, Kids in the Hall.

"The country hits cloud nine when obsessed scientist Chris Cooper (Kevin McDonald) invents Gleemonex, a happiness drug. Soon everybody is taking the little orange pill. But Cooper gets a heavy dose of the blues when he discovers that early test subjects have slipped into comas. Can Cooper stop the people's happy habit - before it's too late?

"The Kids have never been more hilarious as they play over 40 wild and weird characters, including a heavy-metal god named Grivo (Bruce McCulloch); a corporate yes-man (NewsRadio's Dave Foley); as sexually repressed husband (Scott Thompson); and a megalomaniacal pharmaceutical magnate (Mark McKinney).

"Feeling like a comedy fix? Take Brain Candy, once a day or as needed. And have a nice trip."

Cast and Characters

Dave Foley
Marv, Psychiatrist, New Guy, Raymond

Bruce McCulloch
Alice, Cisco, Grivo, Worm Pill Scientist, Cop #2, Cancer Boy, White Trash Man

Kevin McDonald
Chris, Chris' Dad, Doreen, Lacey

Mark McKinney
Simon, Don Roritor, Cabbie, Gunther, Cop #1, Nina Bedford, Melanie, Drill Sergeant, White Trash Woman

Scott Thompson
Baxter, Mrs Hurdicure Wally, Malek, Big Stummies Scientist The Queen, Raj, Clemptor

Trivia

•  The movie was originally entitled The Drug, but the Kids were required to change it. They settled on Brain Candy, which was approved, but which they thought implied harder, more explicit drug use than the original title.
•  The Kids puposely choose to create new characters, rather than simply fit their well-known characters into a movie plot. The recurring characters from the show that do pop up are less "famous" ones: the Bigot Cabbie, Raj, Lacey, Melanie, Nina Bedford (Nina Spudkneeyak on the show), Cancer Boy (first appeared on the last show), The Queen, and the White Trash couple (Sid and Sharisse).
•  The final film was written by Bruce, Kevin, Mark, Scott, and Norm Hiscock. Dave did work on the development and first drafts of the film, but due to NewsRadio and his own film, The Wrong Guy, he didn't work on the rewrites. This explains his number of characters in the film. (He did have an additional character which was cut from the final film, and played a bigger role in early drafts.) He also wrapped earlier than the other Kids.

Transcript  

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TV/Radio Interviews

•  Late Night With Conan O'Brien-- Dave's infamous interview. (April 12, 1996)
•  Z100-- Brain-Candy related interview of Scott and Kevin. (Early 1996)
•  MuchWest--Interview and promoting Brain Candy (1995)

Print Articles/Interviews

•  Preview: 'Candy'Man-- Brain Candy-related Scott article. (April 19, 1996)
•  Eye "Candy-coated Kids"-- About surviving their first feature. (April 11, 1996)
•  Everybody's News "The Kids are Alright"-- Scott interview. (?)
•  San Francisco Examiner "Kid from the Hall heads up big-screen debut "-- Brain Candy-related Scott article. (April 9, 1996)
•  Saturday Night: "The Kids Aren't All Right"-- The controversial article. (March 1996)

Other Text

•  Brain Candy Bios
•  Brain Candy timeline- related troupe history

Reviews

•  Calgary Sun - by Louis B. Hobson. Negative.
•  Chicago Reader - Negative.
•  Chicago Tribune - by Gene Siskel. Positive.
•  Chicago Tribune - by Michael Wilmington. Neutral.
•  College Hill Independent - by Eric Raskin. Positive.
•  Critics' Choice - by Brandon Judell. Positive.
•  Dallas Morning News - by Beth Pinsker. Negative.
•  The Dean's List - by Dino Tripodis. Neutral.
•  Entertainment Weekly - by Owen Gleiberman. Negative.
•  Follywood - Positive.
•  Fort Worth Star-Telegram - by Todd Camp. Positive.
•  L.A. Times - by John Anderson. Positive.
•  Mr. Showbiz - by Mary Brennan. Positive.
•  New York Times - by Janet Maslin. Neutral.
•  Newsweek - by David Ansen. Postive.
•  Ottawa Sun - by Paul Cantin. Positive.
•  Planet Lunch - Jan M. Faust. Negative.
•  San Francisco Chronicle - by Edward Guthmann. Positive.
•  Some Syracuse paper - Bill DeLapp. Neutral.
•  Time - by Richard Corliss. Negative.
•  Toronto Star - by Rob Salem. Positive.
•  Toronto Sun - by Liz Braun. Negative.
•  Variety/Reuters - by Leonard Klady. Positive.
•  Washington Post - by Rita Kempley. Negative.
•  Washington Post - Positive.
•  See the IMDB.

Images

Dedicated Links

•  Brain Candy Land
•  IMDB's Brain Candy page

Contributors To This Page

•  Interviews/Articles- Tavie Phillips, Adrienne Young, Allen Lindsey, Trista Lycosky, ,
•  Reviews- Alison Sekikawa, Trista Lycosky, , , , , , ,
•  Lyrics- Brion Vibber, Trista Lycosky, Karen Lutgens-MacKenzie
•  Photos and Other- Trista Lycosky