In 1988, we were introduced to the killer doll CHUCKY in Tom Holland's 'Child's Play'; in the film, a young boy named Andy Barclay receives a present on his birthday in the form of a playful Good Guy Doll, who is in fact possessed by the soul of serial killer Charles Lee Ray. Once Chucky's true intentions are revealed, it is up to Andy's mother Karen and Detective Mike Norris to stop the doll from doing whatever it wants to do.
The film was a critical and financial success, and proved so popular that it was followed by a string of sequels of varying quality. Child's Play 2 in 1990 was a solid follow up which cemented Chucky's charming personality and the humorous tone the series would be known for, Child's Play 3 was rushed to screens as a tired and clunky threequel which failed in the public eye, Bride of Chucky was a return to form, adding comedy to the mix, Seed of Chucky was... just bizarre, and Curse and Cult of Chucky returned back to form, proving that there was still life in the little red-headed terror!
Of course, after 30 years, Chucky was due for a remake. How does it hold up? Well...
Let's discuss the major changes to the premise... and it IS major. In the original film, Chucky is brought to life through the magic of voodoo. A very silly concept, but it worked in its execution because it immediately established lore and a motive you could get behind. Charles Lee Ray was dying, so he transferred his soul into this innocent doll, and the rest of the story takes shape. This one goes for an updated, and somewhat more realistic approach.
In this version, Chucky is a My Buddi doll that is a high tech gadget for kids. He can play and sit with your child and control your TV and other device, etc. His programming goes haywire because of a disgruntled employee and that is why he is given sadistic tendencies. It's far fetched, and gets VERY far fetched later in the film. Overall, the premise works well. I found it to be an inventive concept. It's not perfectly executed, but it meshes well for the story the filmmakers wanted to tell... and it gives Chucky a sense of power over his prey and actually lets us have a very thrilling climax.
The score was written and composed by Bear McCreary of The Walking Dead and is excellent. It conveys the sweetness and creepiness whenever needed and the film incorporates its themes perfectly. I can't fault this score. As an added bonus, anybody who follows Bear McCreary on social media knows that he created this score entirely out of children's toys, and the result is nothing more than unique and inventive. I sincerely hope that McCreary is awarded for his efforts at the Academy Awards because the entire score was a stroke of genius.
No film would be anything at all if it weren't for the actors, and the characters that they portray. In this instance, the characters are near enough the same as the original film.
Andy Barclay is played by young actor Gabriel Bateman, and is noticeably a lot older than his 1988 counterpart, which makes the idea that he is given a doll as a birthday present kind of ridiculous. But a line spoken mentions the ridiculousness of it and they play it off as a joke gift. Bateman plays the character well and comes across as a very intelligently written and sympathetic lead. Andy's mother, Karen is portrayed by Aubrey Plaza, who I initially thought of as too young for this role, but again, they mention it as some kind of teen pregnancy, which adds to the "struggling mum" angle effectively. She played her part well, but I felt that he was horrendously underused. On a plus side, she has great chemistry with her on-screen son.
There's a batch of Stranger Things kids who are tacked on, underdeveloped and uninteresting so I'm not going to dabble on them too much. They were fine. Some supporting players are very over the top, but the stand out performance HAS to go to Brian Tyree Henry as Detective Mike Norris. Never in a modern horror film has there ever been a more charismatic, charming, funny and completely likable character than this iteration of the character. He acts as a true friend for Andy, and provides a lot of comic relief.
Like Plaza though, he is really underused. He is sort of in and out to look at dead bodies, and there isn't really a showcase of his detective skills. I would have much preferred he be given a beefier role, and perhaps have him be the main focus that we follow throughout the story.
Finally, lets get to Chucky himself. Now, I know that replacing Brad Dourif as the voice of the titular doll was always going to be a kick in the balls. Dourif is simply irreplaceable. However, casting a powerhouse voice over performer like Mark Hamill was always going to deliver good results. Hamill gives us a kudos performance as not only a creepy Chucky, but a sweet, kind-hearted Chucky, too. As this version is an out of control AI, and he adapts to his environment and Andy, I found him entirely endearing. Unfortunately, his character does NOT grow into the quip-happy maniacal Chucky we have grown to love. He actually stays the same naïve doll throughout and it simply doesn't fit. He comes off as like a child. It doesn't work. He needed to evolve.
Let's talk about the cinematography a little bit, director Lars Klevberg and cinematographer Brendan Eugama delivered a nicely shot, visually stunning horror film that had no right to look as good as it did. It's always great when every frame in a film like this makes you interested in what you're seeing. Let's be honest, nobody walks into a slasher film expecting good cinematography, and I'm glad that they didn't go for a gritty, shaky Platinum Dunes look.
I've spoken about the Chucky character, now lets talk about his look... it's bad... really, really bad. Chucky looks so cheap, and there is no emoting from the puppet and he just looks weird. There are a few shots where he looks fine, and of course when he is just a doll he looks good. But seeing this thing barely move it's face for an hour and a half, it just looks silly. Supposedly the production team spent six weeks building Chucky and it definitely shows. He is seriously ugly. No parent would want to buy this. I'd slap my mom across the face if she bought me this. I'd rather have a cuddle with the movie version of Sonic the Hedgehog.... before the fixes.
The film almost makes up for it with some really brutal and inventive kills. But, I wont spoil them for you here.
For my final thoughts of the film I am very mixed. I saw it with my brother and he absolutely hated it, which made for a fun discussion afterwards. All I can say is that this film is purely schlock of the highest order. Its script is clunky, performances are over the top at times, it's got a ridiculous premise, it's gory and the effects suck.
I was entertained. I enjoyed the film and I laughed a lot. And, if a film like this can make me laugh and entertain me... then it's done its job.
I'm glad that this movie is successful; I'm looking forward to possible sequels. I give it 3 out of 5 and I hope you get the same enjoyment out of it as I did.
The film was a critical and financial success, and proved so popular that it was followed by a string of sequels of varying quality. Child's Play 2 in 1990 was a solid follow up which cemented Chucky's charming personality and the humorous tone the series would be known for, Child's Play 3 was rushed to screens as a tired and clunky threequel which failed in the public eye, Bride of Chucky was a return to form, adding comedy to the mix, Seed of Chucky was... just bizarre, and Curse and Cult of Chucky returned back to form, proving that there was still life in the little red-headed terror!
Of course, after 30 years, Chucky was due for a remake. How does it hold up? Well...
Let's discuss the major changes to the premise... and it IS major. In the original film, Chucky is brought to life through the magic of voodoo. A very silly concept, but it worked in its execution because it immediately established lore and a motive you could get behind. Charles Lee Ray was dying, so he transferred his soul into this innocent doll, and the rest of the story takes shape. This one goes for an updated, and somewhat more realistic approach.
In this version, Chucky is a My Buddi doll that is a high tech gadget for kids. He can play and sit with your child and control your TV and other device, etc. His programming goes haywire because of a disgruntled employee and that is why he is given sadistic tendencies. It's far fetched, and gets VERY far fetched later in the film. Overall, the premise works well. I found it to be an inventive concept. It's not perfectly executed, but it meshes well for the story the filmmakers wanted to tell... and it gives Chucky a sense of power over his prey and actually lets us have a very thrilling climax.
The score was written and composed by Bear McCreary of The Walking Dead and is excellent. It conveys the sweetness and creepiness whenever needed and the film incorporates its themes perfectly. I can't fault this score. As an added bonus, anybody who follows Bear McCreary on social media knows that he created this score entirely out of children's toys, and the result is nothing more than unique and inventive. I sincerely hope that McCreary is awarded for his efforts at the Academy Awards because the entire score was a stroke of genius.
No film would be anything at all if it weren't for the actors, and the characters that they portray. In this instance, the characters are near enough the same as the original film.
Andy Barclay is played by young actor Gabriel Bateman, and is noticeably a lot older than his 1988 counterpart, which makes the idea that he is given a doll as a birthday present kind of ridiculous. But a line spoken mentions the ridiculousness of it and they play it off as a joke gift. Bateman plays the character well and comes across as a very intelligently written and sympathetic lead. Andy's mother, Karen is portrayed by Aubrey Plaza, who I initially thought of as too young for this role, but again, they mention it as some kind of teen pregnancy, which adds to the "struggling mum" angle effectively. She played her part well, but I felt that he was horrendously underused. On a plus side, she has great chemistry with her on-screen son.
There's a batch of Stranger Things kids who are tacked on, underdeveloped and uninteresting so I'm not going to dabble on them too much. They were fine. Some supporting players are very over the top, but the stand out performance HAS to go to Brian Tyree Henry as Detective Mike Norris. Never in a modern horror film has there ever been a more charismatic, charming, funny and completely likable character than this iteration of the character. He acts as a true friend for Andy, and provides a lot of comic relief.
Like Plaza though, he is really underused. He is sort of in and out to look at dead bodies, and there isn't really a showcase of his detective skills. I would have much preferred he be given a beefier role, and perhaps have him be the main focus that we follow throughout the story.
Finally, lets get to Chucky himself. Now, I know that replacing Brad Dourif as the voice of the titular doll was always going to be a kick in the balls. Dourif is simply irreplaceable. However, casting a powerhouse voice over performer like Mark Hamill was always going to deliver good results. Hamill gives us a kudos performance as not only a creepy Chucky, but a sweet, kind-hearted Chucky, too. As this version is an out of control AI, and he adapts to his environment and Andy, I found him entirely endearing. Unfortunately, his character does NOT grow into the quip-happy maniacal Chucky we have grown to love. He actually stays the same naïve doll throughout and it simply doesn't fit. He comes off as like a child. It doesn't work. He needed to evolve.
Let's talk about the cinematography a little bit, director Lars Klevberg and cinematographer Brendan Eugama delivered a nicely shot, visually stunning horror film that had no right to look as good as it did. It's always great when every frame in a film like this makes you interested in what you're seeing. Let's be honest, nobody walks into a slasher film expecting good cinematography, and I'm glad that they didn't go for a gritty, shaky Platinum Dunes look.
I've spoken about the Chucky character, now lets talk about his look... it's bad... really, really bad. Chucky looks so cheap, and there is no emoting from the puppet and he just looks weird. There are a few shots where he looks fine, and of course when he is just a doll he looks good. But seeing this thing barely move it's face for an hour and a half, it just looks silly. Supposedly the production team spent six weeks building Chucky and it definitely shows. He is seriously ugly. No parent would want to buy this. I'd slap my mom across the face if she bought me this. I'd rather have a cuddle with the movie version of Sonic the Hedgehog.... before the fixes.
The film almost makes up for it with some really brutal and inventive kills. But, I wont spoil them for you here.
For my final thoughts of the film I am very mixed. I saw it with my brother and he absolutely hated it, which made for a fun discussion afterwards. All I can say is that this film is purely schlock of the highest order. Its script is clunky, performances are over the top at times, it's got a ridiculous premise, it's gory and the effects suck.
I was entertained. I enjoyed the film and I laughed a lot. And, if a film like this can make me laugh and entertain me... then it's done its job.
I'm glad that this movie is successful; I'm looking forward to possible sequels. I give it 3 out of 5 and I hope you get the same enjoyment out of it as I did.
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