Child's Play Review

MPAA Rating: R
Released: 1988

Remember when Chucky was a menacing serial killer rather than a failed comedian that cavorts with fellow rubber dolls? Ah, how far the mighty have fallen.

As hard as it may be to believe upon witnessing modern entries in the series, Child's Play was once a landmark horror film that horrified audiences with its dark tale of a cold-blooded killer that inhabits the body of a doll to escape capture from the police. But when the doll eventually finds its way into the hands of a young boy, the true terror begins...

Hi, I'm Chucky, and I'm your friend to the end!

Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) is a notorious serial killer that has a fondness for strangling his victims to death, but as Child's Play opens we see that Detective Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon) has tracked him down and surrounded him inside a toy store. Rather than allow himself to be captured, Charles Lee Ray performs a voodoo ritual which transfers his spirit from his human body into that of a Good Guys doll.

Eventually the popular toy finds itself in the hands of young Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent), who is celebrating a birthday and is absolutely ecstatic about his new gift. Perhaps a bit too ecstatic, because Andy begins to talk with the doll and insists to his mother, Karen (Catherine Hicks), that Chucky is actually alive. Naturally the bemused mom shrugs those suggestions off at first, but she does so at her own peril…

When Chucky turned on the television to watch the 9:00 news, I did nothing, because I assumed it was that little brat Andy.
When Chucky pushed the babysitter out the window to her death, I did nothing, because a doll cannot possibly do such a thing.
When Chucky spoke to me and I noticed batteries weren't powering him… I freaked out and ran for my life!

The rest of the film is pretty standard horror faire as Chucky attempts to take over Andy's body so he can become human again, killing anyone that gets in his way. Meanwhile Karen appeals to Detective Norris to help her uncover the truth about the evil doll and more importantly, protect her son from the demonic toy.

Alex Vincent put forth a decent performance as the young Andy Barclay, especially when one considers he was about five years old when the movie was filmed; he was a cute kid and pleasing to watch. Despite putting forth a good performance in Child's Play, he suffered the same fate that many child actors experience: a short-lived career.

For the most part the acting in Child's Play is of average quality; it's not inspired by any means, but it's not poor enough to enter the realms of cheap B-movie mediocrity. Few fans of the genre really expect superb acting in a horror film anyways, as long as the movie offers a good story and/or plenty of scares.

Child's Play was met with tremendous success upon its release, and it deserved every bit of the praise it received (by film critics that normally hate horror flicks, no less!). Although the conclusion of the film offered a definitive ending that was probably meant to stand alone, movie studios couldn't resist the allure of easy bucks after witnessing the commercial success of their child, so a total of four sequels (and counting) have been released since.

While the first sequel wasn't terrible, the others committed the same error that the Nightmare on Elm Street series made by eventually turning a dark and ominous killer into a wisecracking and immature "hero" that would appeal to the kiddie and teenage crowds.

The sequels might qualify as "take it or leave it" material, but the original Child's Play is a strong horror film that should be viewed by all fans of the genre.

Movie rating : 8 stars

If you enjoyed Child's Play you may also find the following films to be of interest:

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