Harefooted Halloween: Child's Play 2

What I Liked: Even though Chucky was essentially the fully formed character we’ve come to adore over the years in that first film it’s part 2 where he really comes into his own with the insults and twisted sense of humor.  With all the maniacal laughing he does during murdering he more or less has turned into the Joker.  Charles Lee Ray didn’t expect to come back to life let alone resurrect as a two foot doll yet again so all he can do is cackle at the absurdity.

They lean heavily into the toy angle which is a natural.  Chucky uses jump ropes to tie up his victims, a little plastic shovel to bury another Good Guy doll, the finale takes place in the factory where they make the dolls and etc.  Thankfully they don’t go overboard with it.  They throw in enough to highlight the theme of a killer doll without winking at the camera.

While the first movie played with more of the creepy doll idea, where he might suddenly appear on the couch when you’re sure he wasn’t there before, this time they went full blown slasher.  Chucky stalks his victims and when he pounces he attacks more ferociously and openly.  He only has a small window of time to transfer his soul to Andy (played by a returning Alex Vincent) so the urgency he exhibits makes sense.

Andy becomes an orphan because his mother got locked away in a mental institution between movies.  No one believes a doll came to life and wreaked havoc so the mother is deemed unfit to take care of a child.  It’s a harsh dose of reality for a film a bit lighter in tone than the previous one.  Andy’s foster parents are also looking after a teenager named Kyle (Christine Elise (Beverly Hills 902108)) and I like the relationship she and Andy form.  Kyle’s been kicking around in the system for a long time and decides to take Andy under her wing.  They have heart to heart talks that they can’t have with anyone else and they lean on each other more as the story progresses.  Kyle is painted as rebellious with her cigarette smoking and sneaking out at night to see friends but really she’s a kind person who doesn’t want anything bad to happen to Andy.  It’s nice to see these two team up to battle Chucky.  Andy still isn’t old enough or big enough to fight him head on so introducing a new teenaged character who’s closer to his age, as opposed to another adult like his mother, is a smart move.

Instead of relying on as large of an array of techniques to bring Chucky to life like the prior installment special effects master Kevin Yagher (A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, 3, 4) and his team seemed to iron out the animatronic and puppetry movements.  This allows Chucky to be filmed closer to how you would with any other actor.  Although certain tricks still had to be used like dropping the camera speed to help sync up his mouth movements.  In turn he feels more lifelike to a greater degree than before.  I thought way less about the different setups and effects employed because Chucky just...is…here.

*Spoiler for this paragraph* I really like that towards the end Chucky fully completes the ritual that should transfer his soul into Andy’s body.  It only fails because too much time has passed and now he’s stuck in the doll.  Clever.

What I Didn’t Like: You have to accept a certain amount of bullshit with these movies like that the toy company that makes the Good Guy dolls would obtain and fully restore the burnt to shit doll from the previous picture including reusing the one eyeball that was undamaged.  The eye is placed in a new doll and that’s what brings Chucky back to life.  I guess that’s fine but it’s still kinda dumb.  Look, I don’t know how else you bring him back though.  We’re dealing with supernatural shit as it is so having Chucky’s eyeball be sufficient to bring him back is something you simply have to roll with.

Overall Impressions: This is mostly the same as part 1 but amped up in typical sequel fashion.  More kills, more blood, more Chucky.  Andy’s psyche isn’t delved into that much but he appears fairly well adjusted considering how much trauma he went through.  The mythology and universe are expanded upon slightly with the Play Pals toy company playing a major role and how Chucky can be brought back to life.  All splendid stuff.

And of course setting the finale in the Good Guy factory is genius.  Andy and Kyle are trying to escape Chucky and then find themselves surrounded by a maze of dolls, imaginative machinery like something out of Barry Levinson’s Toys (which came out two years after this) and a colorful paint scheme that somehow makes the place more unsettling and not less.  The dangerous equipment and chemicals are all utilized to wonderful effect with Chucky being put through the goddamn wringer.  He gets seriously fucked up here and it’s exquisite.

For me Child’s Play 2 falls into the same category as Aliens (among others) of being not as good as the original but I’d rather watch this one most times.  The combination of a brasher Chucky, incorporating other toys into the plot and Andy not being afraid to fight back makes for a worthy follow up and really fun watch.