‘Child’s Play 2’: Sorry Jack, Chucky’s Back [4K Review]
When Child’s Play (1988) proved to be a hit with audiences—it was United Artists’ second-highest grossing film of the year behind Rain Man—little time was wasted putting together a sequel. Chucky also got a bump up to the big leagues, with Universal Studios providing a new home and bigger budget for the follow-up. Child’s Play 2 (1990) doesn’t bring much of anything new to the screen in terms of story. But the increased budget allowed the SPFX team to flex their skills, improving the doll’s movements and granting Chucky a longer list of characters to kill. That isn’t a complaint because Chucky is the star here, after all. But Child’s Play 2 doesn’t move the story forward a whole lot. Instead, this is mostly a showcase for pint-sized mayhem and destruction, cementing Chucky’s place among horror’s top icons. It gives fans precisely what they want with little more.
Two years on from the events of the last film and Andy Barclay (a returning Alex Vincent) has been sent to live with a foster family after his mother was declared insane due to her claims of a killer doll. His new parents—played by Gerrit Graham and Jenny Agutter—take different approaches to rehabilitating the traumatized kid. The only person who is impartial to Andy’s behavior is Kyle (Christine Elise), his new sister with problems of her own. But old traumas rear up when Andy finds a Good Guy doll in the house, named “Tommy”, which, as you’d expect, is eventually swapped out by a reborn Chucky who for some reason still needs Andy. From that point on it’s rinse-and-repeat as Chucky murders everyone in Andy’s life while Andy tries to convince every adult a Good Guy doll is trying to kill him to no avail.
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There are pieces of Child’s Play 2 I really enjoy but overall it’s Sequel 101 aside from a few inspired scenes. The opening is creepy and clever, with the engineers at Play Pals Corporation reassembling Chucky to prove there was never anything wrong with the doll. This, of course, ends poorly for the workers. You know who I really feel for? Mattson (Greg Germann), the assistant to CEO Mr. Sullivan (Peter Haskell). After the melee during Chucky’s rebirth Mattson gets lambasted by his boss, forced to work overtime at home—on his anniversary, no less. After he stops to get some vodka for a fun-fueled night with his fiancée Chucky provides him an ignominious end by way of a plastic bag. Poor guy.
One area where the film falters is in dealing with Andy’s trauma. This kid went through hell fighting a best-friend-turned-best-fiend, losing his “aunt” and being taken away from his mother. Yet when he discovers “Tommy” in his new house he hardly reacts. Shockingly, his new parents don’t seem to think it’s a big deal there’s a Good Guy in their home. The dad dismisses it outright. I would’ve expected Andy to go nuts and bash in the doll’s plastic brains. Vincent’s performance is fairly flat in that regard. The emotions he should be projecting aren’t there. However, the series would directly deal with Andy’s trauma more realistically in the next film, Child’s Play 3 (1991).
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Aside from the opening scene where this film shines is in the climax. Child’s Play had a tense, violent, seemingly never-ending finale, and this sequel ups the ante with a Good Guys factory-set showdown. The poor lone factory worker gets his eyes replaced with a plastic set. Chucky’s now-human hand savagely is ripped off, with a blade shoved into the stump. Manufacturing mayhem is aplenty. And the finale ends this entry on another explosive note.
I will say even though Child’s Play 2 doesn’t break any new ground it’s never boring. Graeme Revell’s score is playfully creepy, Christine Elise is an excellent (and much-needed) addition to the cast, and the kills are clever, gruesome, and chock full of Chucky’s sadistic wit. I would have liked to see Andy taken in a new direction. But since we get that in the next film this is more of a wicked waypoint on Chucky’s longtime cinematic journey.
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To sum up this transfer in a word: gorgeous. Scream Factory has gone back to the original camera negative and created a stunning 4K picture that is the best looking in the series. The 1.85:1 2160p image is defined by razor-sharp detailing, tight photography, naturally filmic grain, and a lush color palette brought out by the Dolby Vision grading. The defined minutia of any given shot is practically reference quality. There isn’t one area in which this transfer is a slouch. Even nighttime scenes retain their visibility within a pitch black cloak of stable contrast. Fans who lamented the heavy grain of the first film will be smitten by the gorgeous grain on display here.
There are two options on the audio front: a new English Dolby Atmos track and a DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo option. This isn’t such active audio that the Atmos track has much chance to shine. But the discreet placement of some effects (the opening storm offers a strong sense of direction) and a wider soundscape for Revell’s score provide a good bit of immersion. The stereo track is more direct and focused. But if you’ve got the speakers for it multi-channel is the winner to my ears. Dialogue seems a little on the low side at times but is otherwise discernible and clear. Subtitles are available in English SDH.
The only extra on the 4K disc is an audio commentary with director John Lafia.
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On the Blu-ray, that same commentary track can be found along with a litany of new features.
“Puppet Master: Interview with writer Don Mancini” (HD, 12 min and 57 seconds), this is a Zoom interview, unfortunately, but Mancini has plenty to say about Chucky’s return and the development of the script.
“Under Pressure: Interview with actor Alex Vincent” (HD, 7 min and 56 seconds), yet another Zoom interview, with Vincent talking about the pressure he felt being top billed for the follow-up.
“The Family Expands – Interview with producer David Kirschner” (HD, 7 min and 37 seconds), touching upon various hurdles and achievements during pre-production and behind the camera.
“In Kyle We Trust – Interview with actress Christine Elise” (HD, 10 min and 9 seconds), the actress talks about how she tends to play herself in most films which allows her to be more comfortable in front of the camera.
“School’s Out – Interview with actress Beth Grant” (HD, 5 min and 28 seconds), another Zoom chat with the longtime actress discussing how she wound up with her part.
“The Second Dance – Interview with executive producer Robert Latham Brown” (HD, 3 min and 59 seconds), Brown discusses upping the ante in terms of SPFX, shooting with the puppet, and more.
“Extra Scenes from Broadcast TV Version” (SD, 11 min and 20 seconds) offers a look at the extra character development cut from the final theatrical film.
A theatrical trailer (HD, 1 min and 18 seconds) and TV spot (HD, 31 seconds) are also included.
Special Features:
DISC ONE – 4K BLU-RAY:
- NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
- DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
- NEW DOLBY ATMOS TRACK
- Audio Commentary with director John Lafia
DISC TWO – BLU-RAY:
- NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
- NEW DOLBY ATMOS TRACK
- NEW Puppet Master – an interview with writer Don Mancini
- NEW The Family Expands – an interview with producer David Kirschner
- NEW Under Pressure – an interview with actor Alex Vincent
- NEW In Kyle We Trust – an interview with actress Christine Elise
- NEW School’s Out – an interview with actress Beth Grant
- NEW The Second Dance – an interview with executive producer Robert Latham Brown
- Audio Commentary with director John Lafia
- Theatrical Trailer
- TV Spot
- Additional scenes from the broadcast version
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Child's Play 2
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Special Features
Summary
This is a sequel that gives the fans what they want and not much more – which is fine if you only care about witnessing Chucky’s horrific antics. Even so, Scream Factory’s release is practically a revelation thanks to a strong a/v presentation and a wealth of extras (previous editions had only a trailer). If you want the best in picture and sound, and are interested in learning more about the production via bonus features, this is a must buy release.
