Seed of Chucky
(2004)
review by Don't Feed the Dead

Sometimes even I can be wrong. Hard to imagine, but yes, I must confess that every now and then I prematurely pass judgement on a film that turns out to be quite the opposite of what I expected. Such is the case with Seed of Chucky, the 5th installment of the Child's Play series. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that this film would hold any credibility, but in actuality, it's quite a fun little flick.

Opening through the perspective of a new doll, who we find out is aptly named "shitface", a horrible dream sequence takes place where the murderous little bastard wreaks havoc on a British family. This is the son of Chucky and Tiffany, who is located halfway around the world and working as part of a ventriliquist act named "Psychs and Shitface". Held captive by his human cohort, Shitface dreams of one day being reunited with his parents so that he may have some sense of identity. Although it's quite apparent to the audience that the boy is a polar opposite of his parents, the notion of a "Geraldo" family reunion should be entertaining to say the least.

So Shitface escapes his captor's wrath and heads to Hollywood, where his deceased doll parents are playing part in a movie made after their urban legend. Carrying with him the amulet that initially gave life to the Good Guy doll through the hands of Charles Lee Ray, Shitface brings his parents back to life in a touching, yet hilarious moment. Now that Chucky and Tiffany are alive again, the hijinks of murder and finding new hosts for their souls resumes in a fashion not unlike the previous Child's Play installment. However, there is an element present in the new film that adds much more depth and ingenuity to the notion - the presence of Shitface/Glen/Glenda, played wonderfully by Billy Boyd.

I must admit that going into a viewing of this film I was highly skeptical as to Don Mancini's ability to pull off yet another Child's Play sequel. Much like the other slasher titles that seem to never die, the story of a murderous doll turned family man can only go so far before running out of gas. The injection of the third personality in Glen/Glenda did a remarkable job of revitalizing the series in a fun and unpredictale fashion. Chucky has an offspring that is gender confused, and in some wierd way this film confronts the family issue of dealing with children in identity crisis situations. I applaud Don Mancini for a brilliant script, equipped with a ton of jabs at Hollywood types like Britney Spears, Julia Roberts, Mel Gibson, Redman and yes, Jennifer Tilly herself. The comedy starts from the onset of the film and continues at a rampant pace, something highly unexpected from what everyone assumed to be the "nail in the coffin" for the series.

Far from being the dogshit film I predicted it to be, Seed of Chucky actually turned out to be the crown jewel in the Child's Play series. An innovative storyline with some unique and off kilter acting performances solidifies this flick as my sleeper hit of 2004. Who would of thought that when I wrote a review for the 5th installment of Child's Play that I'd actually be praising it and not treating it like the bastard son of Ashton Kutcher and Rosie O'Donnell?