Child's Play (1988)

Director:

Tom Holland

Writers (WGA):

Don Mancini (story)
Don Mancini (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

9 November 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

You'll wish it was only make-believe.

Plot:

Young Andy Barclay gets the doll he wanted. However, he did not know it was alive!

Plot Keywords:

Doll | Chucky | Birthday | Voodoo | Murder

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Catherine Hicks	...	Karen Barclay
Chris Sarandon	...	Mike Norris
Alex Vincent	...	Andy Barclay
Brad Dourif	...	Charles Lee Ray / Chucky
Dinah Manoff	...	Maggie Peterson
Tommy Swerdlow	...	Jack Santos
Jack Colvin	...	Dr. Ardmore
Neil Giuntoli	...	Eddie Caputo
Juan Ramírez	...	Peddler
Alan Wilder	...	Mr. Criswell
Richard Baird	...	News Reporter at Toy Store
Raymond Oliver	...	Dr. Death
Aaron Osborne	...	Orderly
Tyler Hard	...	Mona
Ted Liss	...	George

Also Known As:

Batteries Not Included (USA) (working title)
Blood Brother (USA) (working title)
Blood Buddy (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Finland:K-16 | Finland:K-15 (re-rated) | Finland:(Banned) (1988) | Ireland:18 | UK:15 (uncut) (2005) | UK:15 (cut) (1989) | Spain:13 | Spain:18 (DVD version) | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A | France:-12 | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Ireland:18 (original rating) | Norway:18 (video premiere) | Norway:(Banned) (1989-2003) (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Brewster Building Apartments - 2800 N. Pine Grove Avenue, Lake View, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

United Artists

Trivia:

Original writer Don Mancini stated in an interview that his original script toyed with the audience a bit longer, making them wonder if young Andy was the killer rather than Chucky. This idea was used by Kevin Tenney in Pinocchio's Revenge (1996).

Goofs:

Factual errors: Towards the end of the movie while Andy's mother is looking for the man who sold the doll to her, she finds him and asks him if he remembered her. She says she had bought the doll the day before when in actuality she bought it days ago.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Mike Norris: I got the strangler! Wabash and Van Buren.

Movie Connections:

References "She-Ra: Princess of Power" (1985)

Soundtrack:

SECOND SIGHT

"Give me the power, I beg of you!"

Young Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) receives a Good Guy doll for his birthday; unfortunately, this particular doll is now housing the spirit of psychotic murderer and thief Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif), who was gunned down inside a toy store. Ray, or "Chucky" as he is also known, learns that he has to transfer his soul into Andy's body in order to get out of the doll, and spends the rest of the movie terrorizing the poor little kid.

"Chucky" is now a bona fide horror icon and one of the premiere characters of the slasher genre. Thanks to Dourif's vocal performance and the efforts of a talented effects team, "Chucky" is brought to vivid and scary life.

"Child's Play" is a surprisingly well-made movie in terms of acting, directing, scoring, and editing. I know there are people who believe it to be criminally inept, but I know it was a shock for me when I watched it for the first time, many years ago, and I saw the scene of Chucky coming alive in Karen's (Catherine Hicks) hands. I mean, one second, you've got this harmless, dopey looking, silent plastic toy and all of a sudden it's screaming profanity and threatening to kill someone. I actually happen to think that the film has scenes of genuine suspense, and prefer this sort of horror to the trendy variety of junk that comes out in the post "Scream" era that is always self-referential and obsessed with the pop culture of the times.

I think that it's fun. It's a straightforward little horror thriller made with a fair amount of style. It has a mostly decent script except for some implausibilities (How is it the doll is always able to reach doorknobs and elevator buttons, for one thing?).

It reunites director Tom Holland with Chris Sarandon, the vampire of "Fright Night", and Dourif, who played the trigger-happy psycho in the director's failed action-comedy "Fatal Beauty".

Star Catherine Hicks and "Chucky" designer Kevin Yagher married two years later.

8/10