Chucky's old girlfriend resurrects him and ends up a doll herself,
prompting them to find an amulet that can turn them back into humans. HORROR
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Bride of Chucky (1998)Directed by Ronny Yu
Written by Don Mancini Starring Brad Dourif, Jennifer Tilly, Katherine Heigl, Nick Stabile, John Ritter, Gordon Michael Woolvett Sequel to 1991's Child's Play 3 |
Talk about a quick turnaround in quality between sequels. Shortly after the release of Child’s Play 3, it was decided by the filmmakers to give the franchise a break while they figured out what they wanted to do next. It didn’t take too long before they decided to up the more comedic elements a little bit and give Chucky a bride/partner in crime. Thus, we got the other fan favorite sequel, Bride of Chucky. And while the sequel after this would go too far into the comedic route, this installment saw the franchise balance the horror and comedy elements perfectly. It’s not hard to see why fans love this one so much.
Bride of Chucky, while still being very much about the man himself, also introduces a new character, Tiffany, played perfectly by the always amazing Jennifer Tilly. Tiffany is a fun, and welcome addition to the cast. Tilly plays the part of sexy and murderous like no other. Her chemistry with Brad Dourif is also great. They perfectly encapsulate a couple who both love and hate each other. Another great addition to this film is John Ritter as one of the most despicable characters I’ve witnessed in any horror movie. Playing completely against type, Ritter nails it as the smarmy sheriff who seeks to only make our main protagonists miserable. If there is one complaint I have for this movie, it’s Ritter’s short amount of time on screen. At least his character gets a fitting death. Which brings me to my other major positive, the kills. Bride of Chucky is where the kills get really inventive and over the top. I could honestly go on all day about how great this movie is. The franchise is honestly one of the more consistent in terms of quality, but Bride definitely stands out amongst the pack. Featuring great new characters (Jennifer Tilly!), some amazingly over the top kills, and a rocking soundtrack, I can definitely see why this has become a fan favorite sequel. It’s most certainly one of mine. |
With a title like Bride of Chucky, Don Mancini has really brought forward the homages to Frankenstein that have come up since Child’s Play 2. Although he’s largely reassembled from his own fan chopped body, Tiffany does use bits and pieces from other dolls she has collected her entire life, just like Victor Frankenstein uses body parts from corpses to create his monster. She is the mad scientist bringing her creation to life so she can have her mate.
Chucky has other ideas about his new(ish) lease on life and it doesn’t involve the commitment Tiffany has been waiting for. Instead, Chucky brings her along for a balls to the wall road trip for a morbid reunion which will hopefully have a permanent solution to the body issues he’s been having. Going along, unwillingly, are Jesse (Stabile) and Jade (Heigl), high school sweethearts escaping Jade’s asshole uncle (John Ritter, who is not given enough time to show how good of a dickhead he can be) who is also the Chief of Police. As usual, anyone who gets in the way of Chucky’s goal is murdered in creative and gruesome ways. The one thing he wasn’t counting on was being outdone and Jennifer Tilly really shines alongside Brad Dourif. For the first time, Chucky is actually impressed by Tiffany’s ferocity and relentless pursuit of their goal. There are some truly outrageous scenes that have to be seen to be believed because words will do them no justice. Mancini has upped the ante in terms of violence and what Chucky can do, if you know what I mean, and I think you do. After stumbling with Child's Play 3, Mancini really knocked it out of the park with this sequel. Chucky now has a murderous lady at his side who is willing to challenge the murderous doll himself. The bonkers ending will make you laugh and say, “Why not?” because you truly can’t keep this Good Guy (and his psycho wife) down. |