Canon-Strike XI: Never Ending Horror

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 50 - Cult of Chucky
Framed for the murder of her family, Nica survived Chucky but has been in a mental institution for several years. Having been convinced that her experience with the doll was a dillusion she comes to realise it was real and that Chucky has seperated his soul into multiple dolls who have broken in. As Chucky works his way towards her, Andy returns to finish things. The film was once again successful and scored solid reviews for driving the series forward rather than just repeating the same scenario each time.





A Member of the films Cult?

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 51 - Child's Play
2019 and whilst Mancini was working on what to do next with the character, the studio opted to branch out on its own and reboot the property. In this new version the Good Guy dolls are called Buddi's and are hi-tech creations that are a global hit. A poorly treated factory worker disables a dolls safety protocols and that doll eventually makes its way into the hands of Andy Barclay. Being a tale of rogue AI instead of possession, the story is effectively M3GAN a few years earlier with Chucky able to take control of other devices and transfer his AI to other Buddi dolls. The film was a small success making $45m against its $10m budget and scoring soldi reviews but no sequel was produced as the studio felt it was too problematic to continue when Mancini reverse undercut them by creating the TV series follow up to his original canon.




A Horror-ific Retread?

[Neon Ignition]

Cult had a good reaction in reviews but it felt like a step back for me, not sure why but the marriage of dipping into the sillier elements coupled with the cold stylings didn't work. You can have one but not both, though there have been weaker entries.

The remake - the doll looks awful and I haven't seen it since it first released but from memory it's actually a very solid film

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 52 - Chucky
A stretch as this is actually the series but unlike most series adaptations the Chucky series is a literal continuation of the original film canon taking place after the events of Cult of Chucky. Not only does it take place after that entries events but the story told in the series is quite literally the next chapter, the only difference being the extended run time that the series format allows. Prior plot points are continued ranging from the multiple dolls, Tiffany's life as Jennifer Tilly, Andy's return, Nica's possession and Chucky's continued reign of terror along with some backstory fleshing out the history of Charles and Tiffany dating back all the way to the original film. A hit for its network, it's currently in its third season.





Where does Child's Play rank in the history of long running horror franchises?

[Neon Ignition]

We're going to extend the season just a little bit this year to revisit one of the franchises we've covered in past years and to look at the additional entry that has been launched since we last reviewed it.


Movie 53 - Evil Dead Rise
Launched earlier this year, the film marked the second attempt to create an Ash-less entry with the film shifting its focus away from the cabin in the woods and instead to an old apartment building where a family finds themselves stalked by the evil force released from the Necronomicon as one of its three volumes is unearthed. Well reviewed and a success at the box office, the film struck a new path where the books are the main lynchpin with a greater emphasis on traditional horror tropes over one lines and comedy that the films and series had leant into.




Did you approve of the franchises latest attempt to move on from Ash?

[Neon Ignition]

For the Chucky series it's mostly good stuff they've put out. You could easily condense each season and come out with a solid Child's Play 8 and Child's Play 9 out of them so they're very true to the films and hit the right balance between slasher and comedic.



With Evil Dead, there's always the pull of wanting Ash to return especially given the cruel way that they always leave him on an unresolved cliffhanger. But as a standalone film Rise works well.

[Neon Ignition]

In October of 1994, three student filmmakers disappeared in the woods of Burkittsville, Maryland whilst shooting.


Thirty years later their entries for this years journey through cinematic horror has been found.


Tomorrow, it begins.

[QualityChimp]

Sorry Neon, it must feel like you're talking to yourself at times!

I really liked Evil Dead Rise. Plenty of gore and vile possession and some Final Girl action.
My fave in the series is still Army of Darkness as it's the most fun and has the best lines, but I approve of this move away from Ash.
I also liked how they were talking about doing different films with different directors, with on the necronomicon as the recurring theme.

I mean, Halloween III tried this and failed, but your kids are gonna love it.

I've bemoaned in this thread before that horror fans love sequels to established franchises, but also moan that there's nothing new.

I'll say again that I think an annual horror series that are unrelated would be so much better than working out how Freddy Vorhees or Jigsaw Myers comes back from the dead again, again. Even an anthology of shorter films, like VHS would be good.

[Neon Ignition]

I'm still amazed that the rights owners to Jason are still more involved in bickering than in cashing in on the character. 15 years since a film now

I still haven't landed on what this years line up will be but myself and the missus are doing the 31 nights of horror movie marathon again, a few new films but a greater reliance on reliable faves.

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 54 - The Conjuring
Edward and Lorraine Warren are called to a house in the remote mid-America's where a large family has recently moved into their new home only to begin experiencing paranormal activity. Ed attempts to work out the source of the infestation as Lorraine struggles with the case due to her recent experience during the case they undertook at Amityville. The film used a common horror set up but launched the most successful horror franchise of all time with its core mainline of entries connecting to spin-offs to also create the second most successful cinematic universe.




Were you in on the Conjuring journey from the outset?

[QualityChimp]

Definitely won't make 31 horror films, but I've got a few lined up that I want to watch like Lifeforce and I'm seeing Shaun of the Dead tonight.

Supes, what's the one where a guy moves into a house and he's watching some cinefilm on a projector and the reel burns up moments after seeing something spooky on it?

[Neon Ignition]

Man, I really don't want to Google the answer to that
The first film that pops to mind is Sinister, I picture Ethan Hawke sitting in a chair in the dark watching a projector and the creature appears, but I can't recall if the reel burns

[QualityChimp]

Nailed it, cheers.

Deffo Sinister. Just watched the trailer.
Wasn't sure if it was that or Conjuring or summat similar.
Might check that out.

[Neon Ignition]

The first one is decent, the sequel much less so

[Neon Ignition]

Movie 55 - Annabelle
Following the success of the original film, one of the most resonating elements from it was the opening with Annabelle the doll. A spin-off was released focusing on the doll and the events that led to it finding its way to the group of students the first film had opened with. The film had a mixed response but managed to prove itself as a strong performer for the franchise, triggering an open door to more spin-offs in future.



Did you rate the spin-off?