Child's Play (1988)


While the movies that followed Child's Play embraced the more humorous aspects of the story, the first managed to play it straight.  That's no mean feat, because the idea of a killer doll is ridiculous on paper, and most attempts to copy the formula have either gone the horror comedy route or become unintentionally hilarious.  In hands other than writer Don Mancini and director Tom Holland this probably would have fallen flat on its face.  Part of the surprise of this film is that it is as good as it is.

Karen Barclay (Catherine Hicks) is a single mother working in a department store in Chicago.  Her son Andy (Alex Vincent) is a fan of a cartoon series called Good Guys, and has his hopes set on getting a Good Guy Doll for his birthday.  His mother, however, is unable to afford one, but as luck would have it a homeless guy near the store has one for sale.  She takes it home and Andy is overjoyed.

Unfortunately, the doll has a little something extra, which is Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif), aka Chucky, a serial killer who transferred his soul into the doll to evade capture by Officer Mark Norris (Chris Sarandon).  Declaring revenge upon Norris and Ray's former partner Eddie Caputo (Neil Giuntoli), Chucky convinces Andy to do his bidding, which leads the police to think that Andy is a budding psychopath.  Unfortunately, Chucky also needs Andy for his own nefarious purposes, as the doll body he is in is slowly becoming vulnerable. 

Part of the reason this works so well is no one is acting like the idea is ludicrous.  Brad Dourif, both before and after being bonded with the doll, puts forth one of the most memorable horror movie performances.  Catherine Hicks and Chris Sarandon are both believable, but Alex Vincent is surprisingly effective as six-year-old Andy.  One of his main lines may sound a bit stiff, but for the most part he gives quite a convincing performance. 

Modern Chucky movies have taken to relying on CGI to portray the doll, but Child's Play relied on child actors, little people and complicated animatronics to bring the Good Guy to life.  It still looks good after all these years, and in many ways better than recent portrayals.  

While definitely a classic horror film this also manages to weave in crime and action elements, and is much more than many of the slashers at the time.  I don't blame the makers of this for moving more and more to comedy as the series went on, but Child's Play remains a great example of how almost any concept can work if one puts in the effort. 

Child's Play (1988)
Time: 87 minutes
Starring: Catherine Hicks, Alex Vincent, Chris Sarandon, Brad Dourif
Director: Tom Holland



 

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