Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Don Mancini
Stars: Jennifer Tilly, Brad Dourif, Billy Boyd, Redman.
This one is a guilty pleasure, and how! In fact, Seed Of Chucky is the most fun I’ve had at the movies so far this year! Most long running horror movie franchises (including the main offenders Friday The 13th, Nightmare On Elm Street and Halloween) seem to lose the plot after the obligatory second sequel becoming repetitive, ridiculous and even boring. But the Child’s Play series seems to have re-invented itself and become fun. <BR>
Seed Of Chucky takes an irreverent approach to this series, and uses the movie within a movie scenario to broadly poke fun at Hollywood itself. A Hollywood movie is being made about the exploits of Chucky, the doll possessed by the spirit of a serial killer, and his homicidal partner Tiffany. At the same time, Chucky and Tiffany meet their son, Glen (voiced by Billy Boyd, best known as the heroic elf Pippin from The Lord Of The Rings trilogy), a ventriloquist’s dummy who travels all the way from England to Hollywood for what he hopes is a satisfactory family reunion. Unfortunately, not being anatomically correct, he is confused about his sexuality. Glen/Glenda, as he quickly becomes known, is a gentle soul initially confused by the homicidal traits of his parents. Reluctantly he becomes caught up in the murderous schemes of Chuck and Tiffany, who want to transform themselves into real life people through voodoo spells and the magic of Hollywood.
Brad Dourif again provides the malevolent voice for Chucky, and spits out the killer one-liners with the venomous relish of a B-grade Jack Nicholson. Jennifer Tilly, who voiced Tiffany in Bride of Chucky five years ago, has a fine time here in a self-effacing dual role that includes playing herself. Tilly is a good sport here as she trashes her reputation and allows her career to become the punchline for numerous jokes. And she even allows herself to become impregnated with doll sperm in a voodoo birth.
Don Mancini, who has written all the previous Chucky movies, knows the characters and the series intimately, and he fittingly takes over the directorial chores for this one. Mancini drives the film with a twinkle in his eye and his tongue firmly in his cheek. There are plenty of in-jokes and sly references throughout (including a wicked parody of that famous scene from The Shining) that will have film fans chuckling with knowing glee.
★★★
