Now Available from Scream Factory.
I will die on the hill that “Child’s Play” from Lars Klevberg isn’t just a good remake, but it’s also a great one. Sure, it’s a last ditch effort from the studio to keep the “Child’s Play” license, but it’s also a damn good re-imagining of the concept that fixes the entire premise in to more modern times. And while the original film did address complex ideas about mental illness and Andy’s inherent loneliness from being what used to be described as a “latch key kid,” Klevberg’s remake is all about genetics, and whether our violent natures can be by nature or nurture.
Karen and her son Andy move to Chicago after the recent passing of Andy’s father. Karen gets Andy a Buddi Doll, the newest advancement in AI tech from the Kaslan Corporation which can, like Alexa or Siri, connect to other Kaslan tech like drones, phones, TVs, and Computers. What neither knows is that this Buddi has had its “safety features” removed at the plant in Vietnam. Named Chucky the advanced AI begins to take violent vengeance on those that he feels are interrupting his “play time” with Andy.
Does Chucky sour and become psychotic because of the terrible virus that’s implanted in him by the vengeful computer programmer, or by the environment of abuse and violence that’s cultivated by his owner Andy? Andy is someone who’s very sympathetic but he also vents his frustrations on the well meaning Chucky who spends a lot of his time learning and then acting out in gruesome ways. “Child’s Play” is very much the dark horror comedy that the sequels inevitably transformed in to, but so much of it is creative and entertaining with great kill scenes, and some great performances from the cast.
In particular there’s Aubrey Plaza and Gabriel Bateman, we well as Mark Hamill who is just fun as the Buddi doll Chucky. We might never get a sequel, but “Child’s Play” is still a re-imagining I believe will become more widely appreciated in the coming years.
For the fully stacked release from Scream Factory, the 4K UHD includes the archival audio commentary with director Lars Klevberg. The Blu-Ray includes the aforementioned archival audio commentary that discusses production, conception, casting, et al. It’s a very informative and lively track worth listening to. There are three new segments for the release including “A New Start” with Actor Gabriel Bateman.
The eleven minutes interview with the actor who plays Andy discusses his approach to the role, and views on the original film. “Head of the Patch” is a nine minutes segment with actor David James Lewis who plays Karen’s boyfriend discussing how he was cast, and the process. Finally, there’s “Beautiful Darkness” the twelve minutes segment with production designer Dan Hermansen who explains making the film as different from the original film as possible to avoid legal repercussions, as well as set design, costumes and everything else. The Making of Child’s Play is a five minutes EPK making-of that discusses the changes made for the modern era for a new Child’s Play.
Featuring interviews with director Klevberg, producer Seth Gramme-Smith, actors Brian Tyree Henry, Aubrey Plaza, Gabriel Bateman, and others. Bringing Child’s Play’s Chucky To Life is a four minutes brief look at the various techniques and work that went into making this modern interpretation of Chucky. There’s the three minutes Soundtrack Trailer featuring composer Bear McCreary that also technically doubles as a music video. There are some of Lee Hardcastle’s claymations including the one minute Toy Massacre, and AI Mayhem. Finally, there’s the one minute still gallery with fourteen production stills that can be navigated with the back and forward buttons. Finally there’s the original Theatrical Trailer.