Child's Play 3 (1991)

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Child's Play Reviews

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It's just a personal opinion, but here we have what's probably the least watch-worthy chapter of the original 'Child's Play' trilogy - when things were still called 'Child's Play' and not '(blank) of Chucky'. I can't say it's completely without its moments, but while the first and second were still horror movies, this is where things started to shift to horror/comedy. So with me enjoying that sort of self-awareness so much, there's a part of me that gets a kick out of it... but that doesn't mean it's not still quite bad.

The horror/comedy aspect of this film feels weird and out of place for some reason. When 'Jason Lives' did it, it did a good job of showing us that it didn't take itself seriously. This is still a bit more of a horror movie though, and doesn't seem to know what it's going for. It's not as scary as the first two, not as comedic as the next two, and falls somewhere in this sort of middle ground, which sounds better than it really is. More than anything, it felt like a last-effort cash grab for the series. Bear in mind, this was 1991, so the slasher genre was at a point of dwindling interest, while movies like 'Silence of the Lambs' reminded us that horror could have drama and strength behind it.

We start the film off with Chucky's (Brad Douriff) resurrection. Once again he's rebuilt and comes back to life, but this time before the credits stop rolling (way to build tension). The Play Pals toy company is running out of ideas and running out of money, so it's recommended that after 8 years, they bring the Good Guy doll back on the market - starting with Chucky, the rebuild of the old doll. Why they wanted to rebuild a melted heap of plastic to bring back a doll that has offered them nothing but bad publicity over the years? Your guess is as good as mine. I mean, they could just start from scratch but... we need to bring Chucky back to life for this movie, right?

Enter Andy (Justin Whalin), now 16, who is shipped off to Military School after a series of foster home failures. There, he befriends a boy named Tyler (Jeremy Sylvers), a dude named Whitehurst (Dean Jacobson) and a girl named DeSilva (Perrey Reeves). He also has to cope with lieutenant colonel Brett C. Shelton (Travis Fine), who routinely bullies the cadets in ways that make one sincerely question any legality behind them. Times are tough for Andy now, but he holds his own as he tries to push through it with the support of his newfound friends. But little does he know, an old "friend" has figured out where he is.

Chucky manages to mail himself to Andy, only to stumble across Tyler instead, who greedily takes the package and opens it to find Chucky in his Good Guy package. Now we hit rewind a bit to remind the audience that Chucky's curse includes the need to transfer his soul into the first human body to who he reveals his identity. In the first one, it was Andy, and upon his reconstruction in the second one, it was still Andy. This time, things just go back to the original rules for whatever reason, and Andy's taken out of the picture because THIS time, his first big reveal is to little Tyler. Basically, the plot here is as simple as "Protect the kid from Chucky"; one of these what I like to call, "Escort Mission" movies.

I will give the film a touch of credit for some pretty good casting for Andy with Whalin; marking the only time Andy isn't played by Alex Vincent. One could potentially convince me that it was supposed to be the same kid. But having said that, the overall acting here leaves a lot to be desired - even if it is a standard horror movie of the time. It's hard to put my finger on it, but there's something about 'Look Who's Stalking' (by the way, that's the full title of this movie) that just feels like a rush of a crank-out to make a quick buck and give Chucky one final ride, as filmmakers are seeing slasher horror falling apart around them by this point.

While the 'Child's Play' movies are by no means perfect, I still tend to hold the first two in higher regard than this one. As mentioned in my previous review of 'Child's Play 2', they do a good job of splitting types of horror between the original two, balancing psychological and physical with small doses of comedy. By this point, Chucky was seen as a bit of a joke, burning out bright but fast. I guess the little guy certainly made his mark for the time, but any scariness behind Chucky was definitely taken out with this particular chapter. LUCKILY, however, Chucky would eventually be resurrected to embrace the horror/comedy aspect fully in a few years from this with 'Bride', but I have to admit, it gets super weird from there!

2/5

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