Every town across America has its own history and heritage. In spite of corporations attempting to make every American town a carbon copy of the next, these cultural attributes are still surviving. Factors that make each town unique include places such as New Milford, Connecticut, which has its own interesting history.
Settled in 1707, New Milford has a long, rich history. Much to discuss, it includes once being the residence of Roger Sherman (who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution), a place where several locations were once part of the Underground Railroad network, and also the home of the legend of Lovers’ Leap.
Digging deeper into the haunting Lovers’ Leap story, it is said that a Penobscot girl and Anglos settler were forbidden to be together. In love, they allegedly could not imagine life apart and decided to join each other in death as they leaped off a steep cliff into the river below. A bit of a tragic story of romance, it has stood as a legend that follows New Milford through time, and this is brought to light in the new independent Horror film entitled Candlewood.
A film co-written, directed, and produced by Myke Furhman, Candlewood initially had a limited theatrical run in 2024 before being picked up by Mill Creek Entertainment for broader distribution. Secured for a video-on-demand release that hit streaming platforms such as Apple/iTunes, Amazon Prime, and more on March 11, 2025, it also had a new limited local theater screening starting on March 6, 2025, which continues currently.
Giving a chance to find a larger audience, it is also important to understand that Furhman is a filmmaker with several Emmy awards for prior works. Clearly talented and passionate, Furhman was eager to make his own film and make his directorial debut with Candlewood. Growing up in the rural surroundings of Gaylordsville (a quiet village within New Milford), Furhman used the area to his advantage with Candlewood, mixing the natural beauty with local legend for an interestingly twisted Horror film.
With this in mind, Candlewood showcases Furhman’s ambition as an independent filmmaker. Obviously, budget limitations present some challenges, but overall, he, along with the rest of the cast and crew, does a fine job of providing a high-quality product that keeps you engaged.
To explain it further, Candlewood follows a blended family transplanted from New York City to the more serene surroundings of New Milford, Connecticut. This family consists of a Wall Street type named Kevin Barrington (Joel Bryant) and his daughter Sarah (Isabel Lysiak), along with his wife Veronica (Lisann Valentin) and her son Matteo (Coulter Ibanez). Together, they are a bit of a dysfunctional bunch, and no one seems to be on the same page.
Moving into a beautiful home, a part of a community called Candlewood Hills, the Barrington family soon encounters the neighborhood property manager Elijah Boardman (Jeffrey Alan Solomon), who seems less than amused by the family’s attitudes. Soon after, the entire family begins to experience visions of horror, leading them to believe ghosts of New Milford’s past haunt the area surrounding their new home. Is there truly evil lurking in the woods, or is it all in their heads?
A mix of Horror and Psychological Thriller, you immediately cannot help but find the Barrington family as a whole completely unlikeable, save young Matteo. All extremely self-centered, self-absorbed, and entitled, they easily fall into the stereotype of pompous New Yorkers moving to a small town. Considering this, it is difficult to have much sympathy for the family and their fate (again, excluding the innocent Matteo) because of their insufferable characters.
So, it raises the question – is the Barrington family painted in a light that you are supposed to dislike them? If that is the case (co-written by Fuhrman, Joseph Patrick Conroy, and Victoria Flores-Argue), it is done in a relatively brilliant manner, and you can see each character’s flaws come to the surface with each passing scene.
A significant part of Candlewood’s effectiveness, everything is amplified by Joel Bryant, who plays a typical New Yorker with an arrogance and complete lack of self-awareness that is extremely believable. Beyond him, Jefferey Alan Solomon portrays the local resident who is tired of being condescended by pretentious big-city people with superiority complexes.
In the end, Candlewood is an effective modern Horror film that takes some twists and turns that you may not expect. It is also a great building block for Myke Fuhrman, who has since moved on to other productions such as the Vietnam War movie Summerhouse (starring legendary actor Malcolm McDowell) and the Sci-Fi feature ReEntry (starring Emily Deschanel and Sam Trammel). A creator with a bright future, Cryptic Rock recommends Candlewood, giving it 3.5 out of 5 stars.
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