Child's Play
Rent & Buy
After being shot in a toy store, a serial killer transfers his soul into a Good Guy doll. A mother then gifts it to her six-year-old son Andy, which unleashes terror upon the city.
What critics thought
Child's Play landed in mixed-to-moderate territory on release, with critics broadly crediting Tom Holland's direction and the unsettling Chucky puppet work for lifting what could have been a routine slasher, while dividing sharply over whether the novelty had enough story behind it to sustain the premise. The tonal tightrope between dark comedy and genuine horror was the central argument: some found the balance exhilarating, others found the whole thing too stupid or mean-spirited to take seriously.
“It's the deft wit and swift editing that keeps us off guard, no matter how predictable the plot.”
Caryn James·The New York Times
“the novelty is not buttressed by an interesting story to go along with the gimmick”
Variety
“Scary, yet darkly funny, this thriller of the supernatural from the director of the terrific 'Fright Night' moves with the speed of a bullet train and with style to burn.”
Kevin Thomas·Los Angeles Times
“Unfortunately, 'Child's Play' gets a little ugly at the end, not only because the finale seems a rehash of virtually every shock movie of the last 10 years, but because it involves the very realistic terrorizing of a 6-year-old.”
Richard Harrington·The Washington Post
Genres
Horror
Cast & Crew
Tom HollandDirector
Alex VincentAndy Barclay
Catherine HicksKaren Barclay
Brad DourifCharles Lee Ray
Chris SarandonMike Norris
Dinah ManoffMaggie Peterson
Tommy SwerdlowJack Santos
Jack ColvinDr. Ardmore
Neil GiuntoliEddie Caputo
Juan RamírezPeddler
Alan WilderMr. Criswell
John LafiaWriter
Don ManciniWriter
Wilmer ButlerCinematographyChild's Play
After being shot in a toy store, a serial killer transfers his soul into a Good Guy doll. A mother then gifts it to her six-year-old son Andy, which unleashes terror upon the city.
What critics thought
Child's Play landed in mixed-to-moderate territory on release, with critics broadly crediting Tom Holland's direction and the unsettling Chucky puppet work for lifting what could have been a routine slasher, while dividing sharply over whether the novelty had enough story behind it to sustain the premise. The tonal tightrope between dark comedy and genuine horror was the central argument: some found the balance exhilarating, others found the whole thing too stupid or mean-spirited to take seriously.
“It's the deft wit and swift editing that keeps us off guard, no matter how predictable the plot.”
Caryn James·The New York Times
“the novelty is not buttressed by an interesting story to go along with the gimmick”
Variety
“Scary, yet darkly funny, this thriller of the supernatural from the director of the terrific 'Fright Night' moves with the speed of a bullet train and with style to burn.”
Kevin Thomas·Los Angeles Times
“Unfortunately, 'Child's Play' gets a little ugly at the end, not only because the finale seems a rehash of virtually every shock movie of the last 10 years, but because it involves the very realistic terrorizing of a 6-year-old.”
Richard Harrington·The Washington Post
Genres
Horror
Cast & Crew
Tom HollandDirectorAlex VincentAndy BarclayCatherine HicksKaren BarclayBrad DourifCharles Lee RayChris SarandonMike NorrisDinah ManoffMaggie PetersonTommy SwerdlowJack SantosJack ColvinDr. ArdmoreNeil GiuntoliEddie CaputoJuan RamírezPeddlerAlan WilderMr. CriswellJohn LafiaWriterDon ManciniWriterWilmer ButlerCinematographyRent & Buy