of the best...
HAUNTED DOLLS IN HORROR FILMS
1 DEAD OF NIGHT (1945)
THIS loosely connected anthology of scary stories is best remembered for Michael Redgrave’s turn as Maxwell, a ventriloquist who believes his sinister wisecracking dummy Hugo is actually alive. The clever script means you’re never quite sure whether Maxwell is losing his grip on sanity or whether his wooden comedy partner really does have a mind (and agenda) of his own.
2 CHILD’S PLAY (1988)
THE publicity for the horror film warned “You’ll only wish it was make-believe” as evil doll Chucky made his movie debut. The toy is possessed by the soul of a serial killer. American actor Brad Dourif provided the voice for Chucky in several movies and has said: “It is important to have scary demons in our world on film. We have them in the world. That is why we are afraid.”
3 PUPPET MASTER VS DEMONIC TOYS (2004)
TWO horror worlds collide in this movie which warned: “Playtime is over”. Former teen heartthrob Corey Feldman played the descendant of infamous puppetmaster Andre Toulon, who finds himself stalked by a nefarious toy-making group who want his family’s reanimation formula so that they can turn their line of dolls into killing machines in time for Christmas.
4 DOLL GRAVEYARD (2005)
THE troubled spirit of a murdered girl migrates into her treasured handmade dolls – a baby, an African warrior, a soldier and a samurai – who are buried with her in a garden grave. They are discovered 100 years later when a new family moves into the house and the dolls promptly decide the children are in need of their own violent form of protection.
5 FINDERS KEEPERS (2014)
A NEWLY divorced mother and her young daughter prepare for the future by moving house. They discover a doll hidden beneath a floor vent at their new home and daughter Claire falls in love with the new discovery, naming her Lily. There is just one problem... everyone who comes into contact with Claire’s new plaything seems to end up dead shortly afterwards.
6 GOOSEBUMPS (2015)
IT was billed as a kids’ adventure, but this movie tribute to the popular series of books boasts some surprisingly effective scares. At the heart of the chaos is another evil ventriloquist’s Dummy named Slappy, right, who helps release the creepy characters from the pages of author R.L Stine’s (Jack Black) horror books.
7 THE BOY (2016)
HORROR movie about American nanny Greta who arrives to take up a new job with an English family only to discover her new charge is a life-sized doll of their eight-year-old son who died 20 years ago. Katie Holmes and British actor Ralph Ineson star in the movie sequel Brahms: The Boy II, which is scheduled to come out this September.