Director: Tom Holland
Writer: Don Mancini (Screenplay) Don Mancini, John Lafia, Tom Holland (Story)
Starring: Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon, Alex Vincent, Brad Dourif, Dinah Manoff, Tommy Swerdlow, Jack Colvin
Plot: A single mother gives her son a much sought after doll for his birthday, only to discover that it is possessed by the soul of a serial killer.
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Classic 80’s Horror
Story: Child’s Play starts as serial killer Charles Lee Ray (Dourif) is running from the police, just when he is about to be caught he performs a ritual to place his soul in a Good Guy Doll. We move to meet young boy Andy (Vincent) who wants his very own Good Guy Doll and today just so happens to be his birthday and his mother Karen (Hicks) doesn’t want to let him down.
When Andy gets his birthday present it turns out to have a mind of its own, well a mind of a serial killer Charles Lee Ray. Chucky wants to use Andy to bring his soul back into a human body and get revenge on the man who left him for dead Eddie Caputo.
Child’s Play brings us a new look at the horror slasher genre with the killer being small because during the 80s we had your Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers who were imposing figure but the Chucky doll is something you would never see coming. The story does have the idea that it doesn’t need to be as serious as other slashers but most importantly this isn’t a comedy which later in the franchise is becomes. Having the innocent character in Andy not understanding how serious the Chucky threat it really helps the story unfold and instead of having a damsel like screaming teenager we get a strong single parent having to defend their child against the evil. When it comes to 80s horror this one sometimes gets over looked but it really does give us one of the most entertaining horrors of the era.
Actor Review
Catherine Hicks: Karen is the single mother of Andy, she works long hours to make sure he gets the basics but when his birthday comes around she must find a way to get him the Good Guy Doll. When she finally gets her hands on one it turns out to be possessed by serial killer Charles Lee Ray. She must fight off the killer doll to protect her son. Catherine gives us a strong performance in this leading lady role of horror.
Chris Sarandon: Mike is the police detective that is trying to figure out who killed a close friend of Karen’s. he previously hunted down Charles Lee Ray and was the man that got the fatal shots in while he was on the run. Chris is good but really only just a basic cop performance for this film.
Alex Vincent: Andy is the young boy who wants his own Good Guy Doll, when he gets one for his birthday it just so happens to be possessed by a serial killer and no one wants to believe him when he starts believing Chucky is killing people. Alex gives us a good performance for a young actor.
Brad Dourif: Charles Lee Ray/Chucky (Voice) Charles Lee is a serial killer that performs a ritual to keep his soul alive before he dies. His soul ends up in a Good Guy Doll where he gets to continue killing from beyond the grave as he desperately searches for a new body for his soul. Brad lends his voice to the psychotic doll that will now become stuff of legends.
Support Cast: Child’s Play doesn’t have the biggest supporting role with most being the victims of Chucky.
Director Review: Tom Holland – Tom gives us a good horror that will be the beginning of one of the most iconic film franchises of horror history.
Horror: Child’s Play gives us horror that brings the horror within our home with the killer being a toy you would give your child.
Settings: Child’s Play uses mostly the home setting to show how it would be like for the family to let a toy come into the home that could be a killer showing how it is an everyday moment in the lives.
Special Effects: Child’s Play has great effects to create the animatronics behind the Chucky doll on his killing spree.
Suggestion: Child’s Play is one I would like to think every single horror fans would have seen once. (Horror Fans Watch)
Best Part: Chucky Doll is a great addition to the horror genre.
Worst Part: Supporting characters are pretty much just disposable.
Kill Of The Film: Eddie
Scariest Scene: Chucky’s first communication with Karen
Favourite Quote: Chucky ‘Hi, I’m Chucky. Wanna play?’
Believability: No
Chances of Tears: No
Chances of Sequel: Beginning of a franchise
Post Credits Scene: No
Similar Too: Puppet Master
Oscar Chances: No
Box Office: $33 Million
Budget: $9 Million
Runtime: 1 Hour 27 Minutes
Tagline: Something’s moved in with the Barclay family, and so has terror.
Trivia: The Chucky films have always been accused of inspiring violence in children. One case linked to the series was a gang in Manchester kidnapping and murdering a 16-year-old girl. While they tortured her, they forced her to listen to recordings of the gang leader repeating the catchphrase “I’m Chucky, wanna play?” Director Tom Holland has always defended the first film from these accusations, stating that viewers of horror movies could only be influenced by their content if they were unbalanced to begin with.
Overall: Stand out horror that brings the horror into any parent’s home
Rating
