Child's Play [WS] [20th Anniversary Edition]

Director: Tom Holland, Tom Hollander

Overview

Child's Play seems to have been concocted by a parent who went berserk after standing in line for hours on end to purchase a Cabbage Patch doll in the early 1980s. The film opens with serial killer Brad Dourif taking refuge in a doll factory. Dourif is killed by the cops, but not before he has invoked a voodoo curse which transfers his soul into one of the dolls. That particular doll, nicknamed Chuckie, is unwittingly purchased by Catherine Hicks for her son Alex Vincent. Several murders occur shortly thereafter; all evidence points to Alex, who insists that his cherub-faced doll is responsible. Detective Chris Sarandon, the man responsible for Dourif's death, doesn't swallow Alex's story, but he agrees to investigate because he's sweet on Alex's mom. The slasher-flick ending of Child's Play would seem to have settled Chuckie's hash for good and all, but guess again--the film spawned numerous sequels.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/09/2008
UPC:	0883904112242
Original Release:	1988
Rating:	R
Source:	MGM (VIDE
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Dolby Digital Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:27:00
Sales rank:	4,242

Special Features

Closed Caption; Audio commentary with Alex Vincent, Catherine Hicks and "Chucky" designer Kevin Yagher; Audio commentary with producer David Kirschner and screenwriter Don Mancini; Scene specific Chucky commentary; Evil Comes in Small Packages featurette:; The Birth of Chucky; Creating the Horror; Unleashed; Chucky: Building a Nightmare featurette; A Monster Convention featurette; Introducing Chucky: The Making of Child's Play vintage featurette; Still photo gallery

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Catherine Hicks	Karen Barclay
Chris Sarandon	Mike Norris
Brad Dourif	Charles Lee Ray
Dinah Manoff	Maggie Peterson
Alex Vincent	Andy Barclay,Actor
Tommy Swerdlow	Jack Santos
Jack Colvin	Dr. Ardmore
Edan Gross	Friendly Chucky/Kid in Animated Commercial
Alan Wilder	Mr. Criswell
Neil Giuntoli	Eddie Caputo
Juan Ram?rez	Actor
Ray Oliver	Actor,Dr. Death
Aaron Osborne	Orderly
Ted Liss	George
Roslyn Alexander	Lucy
Bob Kane	Male TV Newscaster
Ed Gale	Chucky Stunt Double
Jeff Dlugolecki	Derelict
Michael Patrick Carter	Voices,Kid in Animated Commercial
Kayla Blake	Female TV Newscaster
Juan Ramirez	Peddler
Michael Chavez	Bellevue Patient
John Franklin	Walkabout Chucky
Joe Renzetti	Composer

Technical Credits

Don Mancini

John Lafia

Tom Holland

John J. Lafia

Richard Helmer	Special Effects
David Kirschner	Producer
Barrie M. Osborne	Executive Producer
Don Mancini	Screenwriter
John Lafia	Screenwriter
Elliot Geisinger	Producer
Peter Donen	Special Effects
Harry Cheney	Sound Effects
Rick Kline	Sound Effects
Howard Berger	Special Effects
Hank Moonjean	Producer
Apogee, Inc.	Special Effects
Richard Pagano	Casting
Tom Holland	Screenwriter
Shelley Andreas	Casting
Sharon Bialy	Casting
Elliott Geisinger	Producer
John J. Lafia	Screenwriter
Jane Alderman	Casting

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- Child's Play
1. Logos/Title/Credits [4:42]
2. Fiery Transference [1:36]
3. "Good Guy"/Breakfast [2:22]
4. Wake Up for Presents [2:26]
5. Buying a "Hot" Doll [1:15]
6. Bossy Boss [:58]
7. "Friend to the End" [:59]
8. News Obsession [4:18]
9. "Night Willies" [4:03]
10. Night Flight [1:00]
11. A Killer's Footprints [4:43]
12. Murder Weapon [1:07]
13. "Chucky's Alive!" [3:28]
14. School Dropouts [2:46]
15. A Gassed Rat [3:12]
16. Little Liar [2:03]
17. Not Battery Powered [2:37]
18. Talk or Burn/Escape [3:00]
19. Doll Bite [1:24]
20. A Bad Part of Town [2:43]
21. Bad Memories [1:12]
22. "Sane & Rational" [1:18]
23. Terrifying Ride [2:31]
24. "Hi, Mikey!" [1:20]
25. New Evidence [1:54]
26. "A Date With Death!" [3:00]
27. "Must Save the Boy!" [1:13]
28. "Don't Leave Me!" [1:02]
29. Electrified Exit [3:02]
30. Where's Andy? [:54]
31. "Batter Up!" [3:04]
32. Evil Incantation [1:53]
33. "The End, Friend!" [2:51]
34. Back & Really Burned [3:28]
35. A New Believer [3:58]
36. End Credits [3:22]

Menu

Disc #1 -- Child's Play
Play Feature
Language Selection
Audio
English 5.1 Dolby Surround
English Dolby Surround
French Dolby Surround
Spanish Dolby Surround
Commentary With Alex Vincent, Catherine Hicks and Kevin Yagher
Commentary With David Kirschner and Don Mancini
Subtitles
English
Spanish
None
Scene Selection
Special Features
Evil Comes in Small Packages: Play All
Evil Comes in Small Packages: The Birth of Chucky
Evil Comes in Small Packages: Creating the Horror
Evil Comes in Small Packages: Unleashed
Chucky: Building a Nightmare
A Monster Convention
Vintage: Featurette: Introducing Chucky - The Making of Child's Play
Theatrical Trailer
Photo gallery
Trailers
Mr. Brooks
Pathology

Editorial Reviews

The concept of a killer doll is a risky endeavor for any filmmaker. The image of Raggedy Ann wielding a butcher knife is easy to laugh at. What works best about Child's Play is that director Tom Holland accepts that the audience is going to laugh, provides over-the-top scenes that encourage the audience to giggle, and then offers some genuine chills. Like he did with vampire films in his first movie, the underrated Fright Night, Holland smartly utilizes his knowledge of the audience's understanding of the genre in order to tweak the material without sacrificing the basic structure of a slasher movie in Child's Play. Couple this smarter-than-necessary approach with a deliciously hammy performance from Brad Dourif as the voice of Chucky, toss in a wide-eyed terrified youngster, and you have a surprise hit that spawned sequels, none of which come close to the quality of the original (although Bride of Chucky has its fair share of twisted laughs).