Child's Play (1988)

Another Childhood Favorite!!!

As a child, it was Chucky that got me interested in the horror genre, and I'd like to thank him on his 20th birthday bash! THANK YOU CHUCKY! It was awesome to see Charles Lee Ray transfer his evil soul into a harmless children's toy. If you don't know the story, I'll spin it for you; Charles Lee Ray is close to death because of Detective Mike Norris, but he finds a Good Guy doll, and says a chant and his soul goes into the doll. The nexy day, it's Andy Barclay's birthday and he desperately wants a Good Guy doll. His smokin' hot mom, Karen gets him one, and it happens to be possessed by Chucky. Detectives show up when Andy's aunt falls out of the window. Andy tries to tell his mom and Norris that Chucky did it, but no one believes him. After Chucky kills his old partner and Andy is placed in an asylum, Karen tries to get Chucky to talk, he finally comes to life, and Karen nearly survives. She needs Norris to believe, but he doesn't until Chucky tries to kill him in the car. Karen and Norris later find out that Chucky needs to transfer his soul into Andy if he wants to be human again. Karen and Norris must stop Chucky and kill him before he tries to become human again. If you love horror, and dolls, you'll love CHILD'S PLAY!!! September 27, 2008

CHUCKY TURNS 20!

Can it really be? Can one of the smallest icons of horror actually be turning 20 this year? Apparently so and MGM is ready to celebrate by releasing CHUCKY'S 20TH BIRTHDAY EDITION-CHILD'S PLAY.

For those who haven't seen the original film (or the four sequels), the story revolves around the Lakeshore Strangler in Chicago, Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif). As the film opens, Charles is on the run followed by dedicated cop Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon). Abandoned by his cohort Eddie, Charles runs into a toy store only to be shot by Norris. Grabbing the nearest thing to a human as possible, Charles uses a voodoo incantation to transfer his soul into a Good Guy doll.

The scene changes to young Andy Barclay's (Alex Vincent) house. It's Andy's birthday and he's made mom Karen (Catherine Hicks) with the hope of opening his presents early. While he gets Good Guy toys, he doesn't get the all wonderful Good Guy doll, something his mother can't afford. But, as luck would have it, at work that day her friend Maggie (Dinah Manoff) finds a peddler selling one for just $30. Andy's day is made! Or so he thinks.

Things begin to happen, starting with the mysterious death of Maggie. Andy tells his mother that Chucky, the name of his particular talking Good Guy doll, is alive and talking to him. But no one believes Andy. And when they finally do, it's too late.

Seems like a fairly simple story, right? Well, in fact, it is. But sometimes the most simple of stories lend themselves to the most frightening of images. What person hasn't been freaked out as a child by some doll that they or a friend owned? And what scarier image can there be than that of what has always been considered an image of childhood, a toy, coming to life to go on a murderous rampage, knife in hand?

The movie offers these back and forth images, the innocent child and doll, with the possessed object wielding a knife or baseball bat in an attempt to kill. Not only that, but Chucky discovers that he will be imprisoned in this form forever if he doesn't transfer his soul into the first person who saw him, young Andy.

When the film was released it was a hit. Abandoned were the horror heroes of the past, the vampire, the werewolf, the Frankenstein monster, replaced with new images like Jason, Freddy, Leatherface and, of course, Chucky. This film has the distinction of being different from the sequels in that Chucky has a more innocent look about him, a deceptive air that later changed to a snarling little puppet look. The image of Chucky is indeed one that can induce scares and nightmares for young and old alike.

This new 20th BITHDAY EDITION comes packed with extras. The original making of featurette, a commentary tracks with Hicks, Vincent and effects master Kevin Yagher (who eventually married Hicks after meeting on this film), another commentary track by producer David Kirschner and screenwriter Don Mancini, as well as scene specific commentary by Chucky. You also get a slew of new featurettes made for this edition including The Birth of Chucky, Creating the Horror, and Unleashed.

As I watched this film again for the first time in years, I was amazed at how effective it actually was. The suspense was well put together, the fears of the doll made real and the legend of Chucky was brought to life before my eyes. I'd forgotten how truly creepy some of the scenes were and even though I knew it was a combination of well engineered puppets in some scenes and little people in costume on oversized sets in others, you still felt that this doll was alive.

I know of people today who still cringe when they see a Chucky doll. It's nice to know that after 20 years, an image like this can still induce a little well placed Hollywood fear. If you've never seen the film, it's worth watching. And if you have, it's worth going back to see where it all began.
September 23, 2008

Child's Play Movie Review from The Massie Twins

Child's Play exploits a nightmare that many of us have had: toys coming to life. The basic fear of supernatural evils commanding something as docile as a doll to commit murder may sound hokey, but director Tom Holland has crafted something genuinely creepy with Chucky, a now iconic 80's horror villain. Dated, but with above-average acting, superb animatronics, beautifully eerie cinematography that catches the wicked doll lifelessly resting in the backgrounds, and splendidly timed suspense, Child's Play is one of the most memorable horror films of them all.

Six-year-old Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) just wants a Good Guys doll for his birthday. So when his mother Karen (Catherine Hicks) is able to obtain one last-minute from a street peddler, Andy is ecstatic. But his new stuffed companion, named Chucky, isn't just a toy. Serial killer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) has mastered unspeakable voodoo, which enabled him to transfer his soul into the doll just before being dispatched by Officer Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon). When Andy's babysitter winds up dead, the clues point to the young child, but Karen knows her son is innocent. Chucky initially only reveals his true self to Andy, but as the bodies keep piling up, Mike and Karen begin to believe the boy's claims about the talking doll.

Although horror films have long since surpassed Child's Play's gore and shock value, the suspense and anticipation that build up as the film progresses is done surprisingly well. Everyone thinks Andy is crazy, and Chucky doesn't reveal his abilities to the audience until a particularly terrifying moment when Karen discovers that Chucky has been operating without batteries. As Chucky's face twists into an unnatural grimace, our fears are confirmed. Perhaps what makes the possessed doll even more frightening is the excellent blend of animatronics and live action. Although the majority of the doll movements are governed by tiny robots, occasionally a little person will be inside of a Chucky costume, surrounded by oversized sets. Imagine the shock of seeing ultra-realistic movement coming from what was previously defined as a stiff-jointed puppet.

Like all great movie villains, when you think they're finally dead, they're not. Comparable to The Terminator, Chucky is determined and nearly unstoppable. The "tough" cop Mike is constantly down for the count and it's up to a young boy and a frenzied woman to calculate the evil toy's demise. Some may be skeptical of a tiny doll's ability to wield death, but he uses strategy to compensate for his diminutive stature. Consider too, that no one suspects the inanimate object. A simply perfect character design for Chucky makes him fiendishly creepy, and as the film progresses, his features change drastically to accommodate scarier mouth movements, and murderous, sunken eyes. Chucky clearly captured the attention of millions, as four sequels were produced, all progressively and unfortunately more ridiculous.

- Mike Massie

September 18, 2008

Finally!

finally!!!! I was waiting forever to buy a widescreen version i have been holding out ever since the release of fullscreen. Movie companies should read amazon reviews so they can hear the demands of their customers. Anyway thank's for finally doing it justice September 15, 2008

It's Chucky's 20th Birthday, and it's CHILD'S PLAY

In the annals of horror cinema and television, there aren't many creatures that are scarier than a doll or puppet with a mind of its own. The evil ventriloquist's dummy in DEAD OF NIGHT (1945), the malevolent Talky Tina in the classic TWILIGHT ZONE episode "Living Doll" (1963), the demonic Zuni fetish doll in the classic made-for-TV movie TRILOGY OF TERROR (1975), and the vengeful creations of toymaker Toulon in PUPPET MASTER (1989)--all of them have frightened and delighted horror fans through the years. But probably the most notorious of all terrible toys in modern horror is Charles Lee Ray. What? You say you haven't heard of Charles Lee Ray? Sure you have! Only you probably know him better has Chucky, the malicious Good Guys doll in the 1988 horror classic CHILD'S PLAY.

The popularity of the wisecracking, diabolical doll Chucky--possessed by the soul of serial killer Charles Lee Ray thanks to a voodoo spell--has precipitated a number of sequels, but in spite of bigger budgets and advancements in special FX, none have surpassed the fun and fright of the original film. The acting from stars Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, and Oscar-nominated (for 1975's ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST) actor Brad Dourif is top-notch, and even the performance from young actor Alex Vincent, who plays the "owner" of the Chucky doll, is quite affecting. The script is also tight and clever, offering a story with a believable plot that is several notches above the average slasher fare of the decade in which the film was original released.

Although the film has been out on DVD for a number of years, the MGM/Fox release of the "20th-Birthday" edition of CHILD'S PLAY is still a pretty big deal. The new DVD marks the first time the film has been released in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 (which alone makes it worth the purchase), and the disc also offers several cool extras: two feature commentaries, one that includes stars Catherine Hicks and Alex Vincent and one that includes the "father" of Chucky, screenwriter Don Mancini; scene-specific commentary with Chucky himself (actually, actor Brad Dourif in character); and four informative featurettes. The digital transfer of the film on this new disc is very nice, with only a few very minor filmic artifacts, and the main soundtrack is offered in crisp, clear 5.1 Dolby Surround. Chucky has never looked or sounded better as he performs his brutal acts of cinematic murder, and at an average price of US$10.99, it would be a genuine crime for horror fans to pass up this chance to celebrate Chucky's 20th birthday! September 11, 2008

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