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IMDbPro

Puppet Master

  • Video
  • 1989
  • R
  • 1h 30m
IMDb RATING
5.5/10
14K
YOUR RATING
Puppet Master (1989)
Official Trailer
Play trailer2:57
1 Video
99+ Photos
FantasyHorror

After being contacted by their mysterious former colleague, four psychics arrive at a secluded hotel where they are stalked by a group of murderous puppets.After being contacted by their mysterious former colleague, four psychics arrive at a secluded hotel where they are stalked by a group of murderous puppets.After being contacted by their mysterious former colleague, four psychics arrive at a secluded hotel where they are stalked by a group of murderous puppets.

  • Director
    • David Schmoeller
  • Writers
    • Charles Band
    • Kenneth J. Hall
    • David Schmoeller
  • Stars
    • Paul Le Mat
    • William Hickey
    • Irene Miracle
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.5/10
    14K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • David Schmoeller
    • Writers
      • Charles Band
      • Kenneth J. Hall
      • David Schmoeller
    • Stars
      • Paul Le Mat
      • William Hickey
      • Irene Miracle
    • 126User reviews
    • 143Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    Puppet Master
    Trailer 2:57
    Puppet Master

    Photos160

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    Top cast17

    Edit
    Paul Le Mat
    Paul Le Mat
    • Alex Whitaker
    William Hickey
    William Hickey
    • Andre Toulon
    Irene Miracle
    Irene Miracle
    • Dana Hadley
    Jimmie F. Skaggs
    Jimmie F. Skaggs
    • Neil Gallagher
    Robin Frates
    • Megan Gallagher
    Matt Roe
    • Frank Forrester
    Kathryn O'Reilly
    • Carissa Stamford
    Mews Small
    Mews Small
    • Theresa
    • (as Merrya Small)
    Barbara Crampton
    Barbara Crampton
    • Woman at Carnival
    David Boyd
    • Man at Carnival
    Peter Frankland
    • Assassin #1
    Andrew Kimbrough
    • Assassin #2
    Ed Cook
    Ed Cook
    • Pinhead
    • (voice)
    Linda Cook
    • Leech Woman
    • (voice)
    Tim Dornberg
    • Tunneler
    • (voice)
    Bert Rosario
    Bert Rosario
    • Blade
    • (voice)
    Michael Laide
    • Jester
    • (voice)
    • Director
      • David Schmoeller
    • Writers
      • Charles Band
      • Kenneth J. Hall
      • David Schmoeller
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews126

    5.513.8K
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    Featured reviews

    7DVD_Connoisseur

    Entertaining, old fashioned piece of feel-good horror!

    "Puppet Master" is a wonderful, good-hearted slice of old-fashioned horror nonsense from the imagination of Charles Band. Whilst short on plot, it features a variety of pretty unusual characters, some fiendishly good stop-motion and stunt puppets and a few excellent set-pieces with just enough of the red stuff thrown in for good measure.

    There are some fun performances from the cast which includes the rather sexy Irene Miracle ("Inferno") and an appearance from William Hickey ("National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation", "Prizzi's Honour", etc.).

    It's one of those few feel-good horror movies, ideal for Christmas viewing!
    Taiyo

    Now THIS was a fabulous movie!

    You'd figure the thirtieth or fortieth movie about dolls that "live" would get stale, but "Puppet Master" has yet more to show you. They're not dolls in this movie, but rather five special puppets, crafted with love to be the companions of an old, lonely man. Jester, the quiet puppet, and last to be created, who sits back and watches is by far the most interesting. It's cool to watch his head spin around (it's made up of three distinct sections) when he changes his facial expressions.

    These puppets have been "lost" for nearly fifty years when the story begins, and a bunch of psychics come to investigate the hotel. The death scenes in this movie are unique -- no one can commit gruesome murder quite like tiny little people. But even though they're rampaging the hotel, these toys aren't evil. They set a standard followed in "Puppet Master II" (a movie that, while tolerable, is no where near as good as the original) in that the puppets have no choice but to follow their master, who will eventually reap what he sows.

    It's a fabulous movie, from the scenery of the old bed and breakfast at the Bodega Bay house, to the almost sweet-looking puppets (who just happen to like to murder people), and all told, I think I would have to give this movie an eight out of ten. Sure, there's simulated sex, but it's not all that bad. The movie itself is pretty tame -- there's language, humor, gratuitous (and fairly strange) sex, and violence, but it's not marked by extreme gore (well, there's a questionable part right at the very end that is a little disgusting).

    One of the best reasons for watching this movie is the cast, particularly Paul LeMat as Alex Whitaker. He's excellent as the peace-keeper in the movie, as well as the first of the psychics to have a really good clue what is going on in the household. Unfortunately, even he, in the end, jumps to the wrong conclusion.

    Viewers who enjoy this movie will enjoy "Child's Play", "Dolls", "Demonic Toys", and "Dolly Dearest", among other horror films. Although "Puppet Master" isn't quite as demonic as the others mentioned, and has no aspects of Satan-worship, voodoo, or demonic culture, it's still another of those "inanimate objects come to life" movies. A definite hit!
    5SnoopyStyle

    B-movie weak but great campy puppets

    Puppetmaster Andre Toulon (William Hickey) was hunted by Nazis and shot himself at the Bodega Bay Inn 50 years ago. Present day Neil Gallagher invites his psychic friends Alex Whitaker, Dana Hadley, Frank Forrester and Carissa Stamford to the Bodega Bay Inn but they find Neil had already killed himself.

    It's too bad that the great William Hickey is dead in the first 10 minutes. This movie badly needs great actors. The acting in this is stiff and uncompelling. The production value never rises above B-movie level. The best thing about the entire movie is the great campy puppets. They are amazzzing.
    Dethcharm

    No Strings Attached...

    PUPPET MASTER 1 is one of the better FULL MOON / Charles Band productions. Its strength is in its weirdness. While the human actors, including Paul Le Mat, William Hickey, and Barbara Crampton in a fun cameo, are all solid enough, it's the vicious, oddly endearing puppets themselves that steal the show.

    We get: #1- Blade with his knife / hook combo! #2- Leech Woman and her mouth full of bloodsuckers! #3- Tunneler's drill-head! #4- Pinhead with his super strength and mega-fists!

    As absurd as this all sounds, it works!

    Alex (Le Mat) and a group of fellow psychics have their collective hands full against these tiny terrors. Director David Schmoeller makes the best of the material. Yes, it's fairly silly, but it's also enjoyable and different...
    7ccthemovieman-1

    Much Better Than I Would Have Believed

    I thought this would be very low-grade horror and dumb with poor special- effects, but I was surprised: it was good.....very entertaining. It inspired me to see the sequels, too, and they - most notably the third one - were good, too.

    It's a little slow to start with, but once the puppets begin their attack story gets interesting, concluding with a gruesome ending. William Hickey gets decent billing in here but he's only in the film for a short time in the beginning. After that, it's just Paul LeMat and a bunch of unknown actors.

    In all, not super but more-than-decent entertainment for an hour-and-a-half.

    Deadly Dolls and Terrifying Toys

    Deadly Dolls and Terrifying Toys

    From a simple wind-up monkey to the high-tech terrors of M3GAN, these disturbing playthings left us with nightmares.
    See the gallery
    Production art
    Photos

    More like this

    Puppet Master II
    5.3
    Puppet Master II
    Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge
    5.9
    Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge
    Puppet Master 4
    5.1
    Puppet Master 4
    Puppet Master 5
    4.8
    Puppet Master 5
    Curse of the Puppet Master
    4.0
    Curse of the Puppet Master
    Demonic Toys
    5.1
    Demonic Toys
    Retro Puppet Master
    3.8
    Retro Puppet Master
    Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich
    5.4
    Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich
    Puppet Master: Axis of Evil
    4.1
    Puppet Master: Axis of Evil
    Puppet Master X: Axis Rising
    3.8
    Puppet Master X: Axis Rising
    Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys
    3.9
    Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys
    Dollman
    5.2
    Dollman

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Pinhead's fists during the punching scenes are actually the fists of dwarf stunt woman Cindy Sorensen, who had to wear the same fingerless gloves and sweater sleeve to make it appear that it's the fist of Pinhead. Cindy cited the most difficult part of those scenes was to keep her head ducked the whole time while holding the Pinhead puppet on her shoulders and give off false punches at the same time.
    • Goofs
      (at around 10 mins) When Toulon puts Blade in the trunk, the hook is his right hand, while every other time it is his left, the knife being right. This shows that this shot was flipped.
    • Quotes

      Frank Forrester: Just a little bit of sauce and Dana can become quite the cynic.

      Dana Hadley: I am not a cynic, Frank! I like to think of myself as a nasty bitch.

    • Alternate versions
      The 1989 UK video version was cut by 3 secs by the BBFC to remove brief shots of a woman's breasts during the fantasy assault scene in the elevator. The shots were also missing from the Film 2000 DVD which featured the R-rated print.
    • Connections
      Edited into When Puppets and Dolls Attack! (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      La Chorrito
      by Pechula Chuppa

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    FAQ2

    • What are the differences between the R-Rated version and the Unrated Version?
    • Explain the timeline of the Puppet Master series.

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 11, 1990 (Mexico)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Puppet Master I
    • Filming locations
      • Castle Green Apartments - 99 S. Raymond, Pasadena, California, USA(then Castle Green Hotel was the "Bodega Bay Inn" in the film)
    • Production companies
      • Full Moon Entertainment
      • Empire Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $600,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 30 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Ultra Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.78 : 1

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