Child's PlayIt's good to play nice with your toys, but some toys--like the murderous "Chucky" (Brad Dourif)--don't play nice with others. Child's Play is a slasher film about the aforementioned Chucky, who is animated by the soul of serial killer, Charles Lee Ray (also Brad Dourif), following a voodoo ritual performed at death's door, after a shootout with his pursuer, Detective Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon). A short time later, six-year old Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) gets the cursed "Good Guy" doll for his birthday from his widowed mother, Karen (Catherine Hicks). But just as Andy becomes attached to his new "friend to the end", people start dying, and Chucky comes out to "play".
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Child's Play emerged alongside numerous other supernatural slasher films in the Eighties, often featuring nigh-immortal antagonists who pick off their victims one by one, before the hero (or heroes) discover the means to end the rampage. Although Child's Play is far from the first horror movie to feature a creepy, murderous doll coming to life, Chucky is especially effective because he resembles a lovable kid's toy. The "Good Guy" dolls are clearly meant to be a reference to the "My Buddy" dolls they resemble, which were popular around the same time that Child's Play was released. (The "My Buddy" dolls could also could speak and were about the same size as their target audience.) It's also clear that the "Good Guy" dolls are the "it thing" to get, evidenced by Karen's back alley purchase of the ill-fated doll from a creepy street peddler who snatched it from the ruins of the toy store where Charles Ray Lee performed his explosive occult ritual. The high demand for these dolls is fueled by a marketing campaign including cartoons, cereal, and other unusual--even questionable--accessories, which has hooked Andy. Their popularity is comparable to "Cabbage Patch Kids", which were also notoriously hard to come by, and which were also an inspiration for Chucky. The "Good Guy" dolls are presented as totally harmless to kids and also lots of fun. Child's Play intentionally exploits this for shock value, and turns the doll into a perverse, swearing, ultra-violent killer. The sinister Chucky is made more intimidating by the voice work of Brad Dourif, full of both mirth and menace, as well as the combination of animatronics and costumes that make it unnerving to watch Chucky scamper around. Child's Play toys with the idea for the first half of the film that it isn't Chucky who is responsible for the unsolved murders--including Karen's friend and co-worker, Maggie (Dinah Manoff), and Charles' traitorous accomplice, Eddie Caputo (Neil Giuntoli)--but that Andy is the culprit. Writer Don Mancini suggests that his original intention was to delay the reveal that Chucky was an animate killer until even later in the film, leading audiences to believe that Andy had been brainwashed by the complex advertising machine. This suspicion leads police and social services to become convinced that Andy is a troubled young boy, an idea which is explored more in the sequel. As Andy asserts that Chucky is really alive, little by little, both Karen and Mike begin to realize the truth about the detestable killer lurking beneath the artificial smile and artificial skin.
Child's Play gravitated away from the more serious, suspense-ridden story of its first entry and into more black comedy and camp with successive sequels, as it was with other slashers in the Eighties and into the Nineties. Like some of his fellow movie monsters, there was always something truly absurd about Chucky--he is a vicious, little doll wearing overalls, and sporting a bob of scraggly red hair and freckles, running around with a toy knife that cuts like a real one. Even Charles Ray Lee is an unlikely--even implausible--killer, who is versed in weird rituals and decorates his shabby apartment with intricate voodoo murals. His entire name spoken in serial-killer tradition; he is also called the "Lakeshore Strangler", although he rarely seems to strangle anyone, and in fact gets into full-blown gunfights with the police. Most of the shocking moments in Child's Play come when people are alone with Chucky, and poke and prod him, as if they're trying to convince themselves that he won't come to life to kill them--crazy as that sounds. The climax of Child's Play is so over the top, that it underscores the sheer insanity of an adorable doll becoming a terrifying threat to the Barclays, and the lengths they have to go to in order to finally put an end to his murderous spree. Child's Play has thrived as a cult classic, and Chucky remains a menacing little imp in the decades old franchise, which has evolved from the Child's Play series into what is now called the "Chucky series"; the newest entry is slated for release in late 2017. The films have retained a few consistencies, such as Don Mancini's contributions and Brad Dourif providing the iconic voice for Chucky--as much a part of the character as Chucky's "killer Kewpie" look. Even though the audience of Child's Play has grown up, Chucky remains an "eternal child" ready to give plenty of chills to viewers with hangups about creepy dolls.
Recommended for: Fans of slasher films that bank toward the absurd about a kid's killer doll run amok. For all of Chucky's killing and menace, Child's Play maintains a degree of tongue-in-cheek black comedy, which has helped keep the series alive over the years.
Child's Play gravitated away from the more serious, suspense-ridden story of its first entry and into more black comedy and camp with successive sequels, as it was with other slashers in the Eighties and into the Nineties. Like some of his fellow movie monsters, there was always something truly absurd about Chucky--he is a vicious, little doll wearing overalls, and sporting a bob of scraggly red hair and freckles, running around with a toy knife that cuts like a real one. Even Charles Ray Lee is an unlikely--even implausible--killer, who is versed in weird rituals and decorates his shabby apartment with intricate voodoo murals. His entire name spoken in serial-killer tradition; he is also called the "Lakeshore Strangler", although he rarely seems to strangle anyone, and in fact gets into full-blown gunfights with the police. Most of the shocking moments in Child's Play come when people are alone with Chucky, and poke and prod him, as if they're trying to convince themselves that he won't come to life to kill them--crazy as that sounds. The climax of Child's Play is so over the top, that it underscores the sheer insanity of an adorable doll becoming a terrifying threat to the Barclays, and the lengths they have to go to in order to finally put an end to his murderous spree. Child's Play has thrived as a cult classic, and Chucky remains a menacing little imp in the decades old franchise, which has evolved from the Child's Play series into what is now called the "Chucky series"; the newest entry is slated for release in late 2017. The films have retained a few consistencies, such as Don Mancini's contributions and Brad Dourif providing the iconic voice for Chucky--as much a part of the character as Chucky's "killer Kewpie" look. Even though the audience of Child's Play has grown up, Chucky remains an "eternal child" ready to give plenty of chills to viewers with hangups about creepy dolls.
Recommended for: Fans of slasher films that bank toward the absurd about a kid's killer doll run amok. For all of Chucky's killing and menace, Child's Play maintains a degree of tongue-in-cheek black comedy, which has helped keep the series alive over the years.