SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Kidskycom It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Finfrosk86 This is obviously a ripoff of Child's Play, but I don't mind that. I don't really mind movie rip offs - if they are entertaining. If they bring something cool to the table, I'm all in. Doesn't have to reinvent anything, but they have to be entertaining.Problem here is that the movie is kind of boring. It's not directly bad in quality. Budget is alright. It works alright. But it is just not much fun.I got this movie in a horror 4-pack, so my expectations weren't exactly sky high, but it still was too boring for my taste.It's not scary. The doll is alright, but never scary.You will have to be pretty damn crazy about killer doll-movies to find this interesting.It's a shame they didn't do more with it, they could have brought in some new, cool elements, but nope. Just a bland ripoff. And the Childs Play movies aren't even that great. I mean, Chucky is cool and all, but I was a little disappointed by them. At least the first couple. The "Chucky"-ones are better.

Woodyanders A centuries old force gets unleashed from an ancient tomb and takes possession of a doll, thus making it come to life so it can embark on a murderous spree. Moreover, said doll has a strong hypnotic hold on innocent little girl Jessica (a sturdy and appealing performance by the adorable Candy Hutson). Writer/director Maria Lease relates the entertaining story at a steady pace, grounds the fantastic premise in a credible workaday reality, does a solid job of crafting a spooky mood, maintains a generally serious tone throughout (fortunately, the diabolical doll doesn't crack a bunch of cheesy one-liners just like Chucky in the "Child's Play" movies), stages a couple of kill set pieces with flair, and offers a flavorsome evocation of Mexico and its superstitious locals that never degenerates into condescending stereotypes. Moreover, the doll looks truly creepy and the animatronic puppet effects used to bring it to life are nicely done. The competent acting by the capable cast rates as another definite plus: Denise Crosby as concerned mother Marilyn, Sam Bottoms as decent dad Elliot, Chris Demetral as eager son Jimmy, Rip Torn as crusty archaeologist Karl Resnick, Lupe Ontiveros as chatty and cheery housekeeper Camilla, and Enrique Renaldo as the earnest Estrella. Both Mark Snow's spare shuddery score and Eric D. Anderson's sharp cinematography are up to speed. A fun little fright flick.

electra_complex SPOILY SPOILERS The Read's/Rade's/Wade's (they are referred to all three names during the movie) move to Mexico from L.A, cutesy Jessica is not too happy so to compensate her, her parents put all her weird behavior including (but not limited to) speaking a dead Mexican Satanist language, speaking in a voice normally reserved for demons on cable exorcisim shows, being rude to the maid, cutting her own hair, drawing pictures of hellbeasts, having screaming fits in the car and turning into a dark eyed, pasty, non-verbal problem child who sneaks around with pointy weapon, down to the move and definitely not to the ugly doll her father gave her from the abandoned factory he was tricked into buying.It's fine as a movie, couple of creepy moments (where the doll is in the chair, Denise Crosby hears clippy clacky steps, looks up and sees the chair rocking on it's own) but as scary as a loaf of bread and similar in other ways too, like it's plain, in need of something else to give it flavor and bloodless.No reason you should avoid it if you like cheesy horror and if you are reading a review on it you obviously do.Special mention of Candy Hutson, she was very good in this and it's a pity we don't see more of her

lordzedd-3 I got to admit I am a fan of Dolly Dearest. One of the most unique looking toy monsters in a while. All though they stole the idea from Child's Play, they still have some good ideas. The way they make the dolls move work. The budget must have been somewhat small, they seem to be able to afford only one Dolly Dearest that moves, but with the use of clever editing and child stand-ins. It gave the illusion that there were dozens of living dolls running around the factory. I got to admit that was clever and impressive. The star power works to, Denise Crosby of Star Trek TNG and Rip Torn of MIB fame work well together. The dialog works and basically it's a pretty good movie. So I give Dolly Dearest and 8 out of 10 STARS.