It’s Friday…
Ahem…I mean Frightday…
And I have some recommendations for you to enjoy this weekend…
Okay…This Frightday’s theme is…
Deadly Dolls.
Aaahhh…
The deadly Zuni doll from 1975’s Trilogy of Terror…
This was the first Deadly Doll that I ever saw come to life and try to kill people…
Scared the corn right out of my chute…
Looking at the little bastard now, I realize…
It still does…
So, let’s take a chronological look at the scariest, creepiest, and possibly even unknown to you, Deadly Doll Movies in the years following Trilogy of Terror.
Magic (1978) – This film comes from the brilliant mind of William Goldman…He’s the man who wrote The Princess Bride…Sir Anthony Hopkins leads an all-star cast in a film about a man whose skyrocketing success as a ventriloquist mirrors his meteoric rise into insanity…In this one, it’s much like the horrifying story of Jeff Dunham and Walter, it’s hard to tell where Corky ends, and Fats begins…The murderous personality that Fats displays, is one that we assume Corky has bestowed upon him…But whether or not we’re right, there’s only one way for him to stop the evil deeds from continuing…That Corky…He’s no dummy.
Meet the Deadly Doll from this film, Fats…
Don’t worry…I’m sure that’s just ketchup on his face.
Dolls (1987) – This creepy addition to the list comes from the man who brought Re-Animator to life…Stuart Gordon…It’s a tale about six people who get stranded in a stately English manor on a stormy night…The elderly owners who take them in are toy-makers, with a collection of seriously deadly dolls…It is ultimately at it’s core, a Grimm’s Fairy Tale about rewarding the good and punishing the evil…Films like this, where the unlikeable characters make up the majority of the list of victims, are a ton of fun to watch…And let me tell you…The wicked stepmother in this one is very freakin’ unlikeable…
Meet one of the many Deadly Dolls from this film…
I know, right?
Child’s Play (1988) – This classic 80’s horror film created a franchise full of deadly doll flicks…Tom Holland followed up his 1985 classic, Fright Night, with this disturbed little tale…The story goes a little something like this…Serial killer, Charles Lee Ray, played by Brad Dourif is trapped in a toy store, about to either die, or be captured…He uses voodoo to cheat both outcomes, and transfers his soul into a Good Guy doll…That doll, now imbued with serial killer soul starts a rampage that lasts…Well, six films, and over twenty-five years.
Meet the Deadly Doll from this film…
Just kidding…But seriously…My Buddy is almost as creepy as Chucky.
Puppet Master (1989) – This film marks the dawn of Charles Band‘s Full Moon Pictures…Their direct-to-video releases flooded the 90’s video store shelves with countless sequels from instant franchises like…Trancers…Subspecies…And of Course…Puppet Master…This first film, released in 1989, is the gem of the collection, and once again proves my theory that the 90’s were almost utterly devoid of good horror…The tiny terrors in this film are the true stars, as they try to protect their own from a team of psychics trying to uncover their secrets.
Meet one of the Deadly Dolls from this film, Blade…
Huh…Doesn’t look a damn thing like Wesley Snipes.
Dead Silence (2007) – James Wan and Leigh Whannell followed up their ground-breaking pseudo-snuff torture porn extravaganza known as Saw with this twisted-up tale about deadly dolls…A couple receives a creepy ventriloquist’s dummy in the mail…No…That’s not weird at all…And get pulled into a dark spiral of doll-related carnage…Ryan Kwanten (True Blood) plays our protagonist, Jamie…He unravels the mystery behind the brutality at the apparent hands of dolls…This one is destined to be a classic in the Deadly Doll sub-genre.
Meet one of the Deadly Dolls from this film, Billy…
Aww…He seems nice.
Curse of Chucky (2013) – In my humble and honest opinion…The best sequel to date is the most recent…This direct to video sequel has a grounded and smart connection to the original film, so much so, that it actually feels like a twenty-five year flash forward…Our protagonist in this one is Nica, played by the man behind Chucky’s real-life daughter, Fiona Dourif a girl who has spent her entire life confined to a wheelchair and who has mysterious connections to Chucky all her own…This girl is fierce and courageous despite her disability…A fact that makes her one of the most compelling horror movie protagonists, ever…Keep your eyes peeled for the post credit scene, it ties this film to the original one last time.
Meet the Deadly Doll from this film, Chucky…
Umm…I don’t like when he gets that Full Metal Jacket look in his eyes.
Annabelle (2014) – This prequel to The Conjuring was not quite as good as the original, but without drawing comparison…It’s a damn good film about a truly deadly little doll…The doll plagues a pregnant woman who after surviving a violent ordeal, must also survive more violence…Followed by disbelief…Followed bu more violence…Followed by more disbelief…I think you get the picture…It’s kind of always the same story with these tales…You: “Hey that doll is real, and it’s trying to kill me!”…Them: “There, there…Sure it is.”
Meet the Deadly Doll from this film, Annabelle…
Definitely NOT on anyone’s Christmas Wish List.
The Boy (2016) – The Walking Dead‘s Maggie, Lauren Cohan plays the protagonist in this gothic tale of loss, grief and of course, a Deadly Doll…After getting hired as a nanny in England to escape her own jagged past back in America…Greta, played by Cohan, is introduced to the little boy that she will soon be taking care of…He’s a shoe-stealing little mischief maker…He’s prone to sneaking around the house at all hours…He’s got himself a nice little list of rules for Greta to follow…He’s rather angry when they aren’t followed…And…Oh yeah…He’s not a little boy, at all.
Meet the Deadly Doll from this film, Brahms…
Nope…I’m still a little too creeped out to make a joke…Sorry.
I must give honorable mention to this creepy doll, named Suzie…
You can find her in the 2002 film, May…
Now, this doll was definitely creepy…
But not nearly as creepy…
Or as deadly…
As her owner.
The Video Store Clerk 