STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

Teenager Andy (Gabriel Bateman) receives a 'Buddi' doll for his birthday off his mom (Zahra Anderson.) Unbeknownst to either of them, however, the doll is programmed to replicate human behaviour (or something!) and develops the power to behave homicidally. Developing an overbearing attachment to Andy, Buddi enacts his own version of justice on Andy's abusive stepdad Henry (Tim Matheson) and the kids who don't accept him, leading to an apocalyptic finale.

An oft trotted out justification for this modern trend of 'reboots' of classic films from the 80s is the need to 'reimagine' them, and put a modern day spin on the film that went before. And so director Lars Klevberg has presented us with a 2019 version of the 1988 classic Child's Play, involving camera phones, the internet and all the other trappings of the present day. And in so doing, has presented us with a soulless, stupid film that no amount of open mindedness and 'not expecting it to be as good as the original' can overcome.

It's biggest mistake is completely underestimating everything that made the original work so well. The innocence and naievaty of the six year old Andy made him more believable, and the there was some genuine mystery as to whether he really was a disturbed child, or the Chucky doll was really alive. Here, Andy is just a typically bratty, spoiled teen, and its hard to see what appeal a doll like that would even have to a kid of that age. Instead of appearing scary in any way, everything about Buddi is laughable, most notably his annoying signature singing tune ("you are my buddy, my only friend...you are my buddy...until the end") that even plays over the bloody end credits. In the original, we knew Chucky was possessed by the soul of a serial killer (even though none of the characters did) so he could manipulate a young child to do his bidding, but there doesn't seem to be any discernible reason for this evil doll to be doing what it's doing.

The deaths in the original were short, swift and brutal, but in this nonsensical remake, they're overly laborious and ridiculously dragged out (to wit, the death of a central character involving Christmas lights and a lawnmower, whereas before simply knocking a character out a top storey window would suffice.) There was a touch of light humour here and there in the original, but here Klevberg seems to be trying to make it central to the script, awkwardly inserting it in during dramatic interludes in the film where it really has no place. Nobody talks, or acts, like a normal person would, given who they are or their situation, and its testament to how stupid and carelessly written the script is that it's like this.

If there was any doubt to the classical status of the original, this soulless, laughable remake is definitely it, one I'm glad I effectively saw for free on Netflix, and one I regret giving the benefit of the doubt to. *

Just awful. Nothing good about this. Casting is terrible, acting is dire, the script is laughable and idiotic, the plot (very different to the original and far superior film) is so stupid and badly executed. Had potential to be a great film but looks like it was made by children for children. These damn millennials and their sheer arrogance to try and re-tell classic 80s horror is galling.

Right, well if you ever have seen any of the old "Child's Play" movies where it is Brad Dourif voicing the Chucky doll, then you might want to do yourself a favor and give this abysmal 2019 reboot (or remake, whatever Hollywood wants to call it) a wide berth.

This 2019 movie was every bit as horrible as I had expected and anticipated it to be. I mean, you don't go back and meddle with the classics; just look at what happened with "IT", "Pet Sematary" and "Poltergeist" to mention but a few of classic horror movies that were wronged horribly by Hollywood's quest to revisit things that worked and try to make it better.

Can't really say that director Lars Klevberg did anything particularly great here with the script and storyline as written by Tyler Burton Smith.

Sure, most of us are already well familiar with the story and legacy of Charles Lee Ray and Chucky, which just makes this 2019 remake such an unnecessary movie. And it didn't help much that the movie was unfathomably generic and horribly scripted. Actually, for a seasoned horror veteran as myself and having grown up with the "Child's Play" movies from the very first, then this 2019 was a slap to the face with a cold, dead fish.

Sure, they changed the script and storyline and Charles Lee Ray is not even a part of the storyline in this ghastly remake. And the changes weren't really all that good.

And what is up with the appearance of Chucky in this 2019 version? He doesn't even look nearly as off or disturbing as he did in the old movies. In fact, there is just something way too cartoonish about the way he looks now and it doesn't suit the Chucky character one bit.

Now, what does work for the movie is the fact that they have Mark Hamill voicing Chucky. But while Mark Hamill does indeed have a very characteristic voice and I have been a fan of him since "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope", then he is by no means no Brad Dourif. Not even close.

I am sure that this 2019 "Child's Play" movie will find a niche with younger viewers whom might never have seen or even heard of the old classics. But for us whom have and do like the classics, this was just a train wreck.