It was another trip to Cineworld and this time I checked the new movie M3GAN for my review, this has been a movie that I’ve been dying to see after seeing the teasers that were doing the rounds some time ago, it had me interested even more knowing that James Wan was involved in the movie.
A toy company that is on the cutting edge of technology has created a toy that is extremely popular and annoying, much like the Furbies from some years back, the roboticist that has created the toys has also created a new “toy” that could be the ultimate companion to children.
The M3GAN is a lifelike doll that is emotionally bonded to the roboticist niece after a car accident kills her parents, Gemma (Allison Williams, Get Out) becomes the guardian of Cady (Violet McGraw, The Haunting of Hill House) which in turn becomes the perfect opportunity to test out M3GAN and develop the self-learning of the robot ready for the toy market.
But will any idea of making things better, the doll’s programming works too well and it becomes very overprotective of Cady to the point that to protect her paired child it will commit murder to keep her safe.
Before I went in to see the movie I knew that the film wouldn’t be a gory slasher-type horror as it has a 15 certificate here in the UK, but I have to say that the way the film is shot. cut, written and the comedy elements during M3GAN certainly make up for the lack of pure horror, making the movie more enjoyable than seeing the gore that would be in some of the scenes.
As the film moves along and the doll learns more from Cady (McGraw) there are some great one-liners from M3GAN that gives you that uneasy feeling of the way that artificial intelligence could go, let’s just hope that we don’t go too far down that roads in reality.
McGraw is great to watch as Cady as she changes through the movie as she attaches herself to M3GAN as a sort of surrogate friend or even mother after the loss of her parents, her attitude changes so much as she gets more attention from the doll as she does from her aunt (Williams), you really start to feel for her character with the loss that she is feeling but really can’t show it and M3GAN uses this loss and emotional turmoil to her advantage.
Gemma (Williams) really doesn’t know how to look after her niece, there is a scene when Cady first arrives at Gemma’s house and tries to play with some toys on the shelf, to which Gemma says that the toys are collectables and are not to be played with, not having children of her own she really doesn’t understand a child’s idea of the difference.
The cast of M3GAN all work well together, but it is the key cast members that bring this story to life, especially the doll itself which is played by Amire Donald and voiced by Jenna Davies, there is really a creepiness about the look, the realness of something that isn’t human is quite unnerving and if you have a fear of dolls then this will certainly creep you out.
I’ve always enjoyed James Wan‘s work such as Malignant and of course the movies in The Conjuring Universe, this is another of his stories that I’ve enjoyed on the big screen, director Gerard Johnstone has certainly brought the screenplay from Akela Cooper to the bring screen very well, the touches of comedy in the writing works well.
The music for the movie from Anthony Willis sounds great and there are some wonderful moments that took me by surprise with some musical numbers from the doll that I really wasn’t expecting, they sound great but also rather creepy at the same time when heard in the context of the movie.
What I was waiting for in the movie was the M3GAN dance and when it comes along it certainly works in the way it is performed and why the doll is doing it, suffice to say it’s a GIF that everyone has most probably seen and when you see it in the movie its a bit of a jaw-dropper.
Now I have heard on the grapevine that M3GAN was originally shot for an R-rating in the US and after shooting the producers noticed that the movie was closer to a PG-13 and some re-shoots were done to tone down the violence.
M3GAN is coming home!
M3GAN arrives in an all-new unseen edition with revealing extras when you purchase on Digital Download from April 3, 2023, and on Blu-rayTM and DVD April 17, 2023, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. The “existentially scary” (Collider) film, presented from Universal Pictures and Blumhouse and produced by Atomic Monster in association with Divide/Conquer, has crossed $167 million at the global box office. M3GAN is produced by masters of horror—Atomic Monster’s James Wan (Saw, Insidious, The Conjuring, Anabelle) and Blumhouse’s Jason Blum (Halloween franchise, The Invisible Man, The Black Phone) and directed by Gerald Johnstone (Housebound). The
M3GAN UNSEEN EDITION delivers more distressing violence and profanity and features never-before-seen bonus content including a breakdown of the creation of M3GAN and behind-the-scenes featurettes showcasing the film’s complex stunts and gory deaths.
EXCLUSIVE BONUS FEATURES ON BLU-RAYTM, DVD & DIGITAL DOWNLOAD*:
- A New Vision of Horror – Filmmakers and cast break down how the world of M3GAN was created, including the initial idea, through production under the leadership of director Gerard Johnstone
- Bringing Life to M3GAN – See how animatronics, puppets, and actor Amie Donald helped make M3GAN as real as possible
- Getting Hacked – A behind-the-scenes look at how cast and crew accomplished some of the film’s complex stunts and gory deaths
*Available with purchase from iTunes only
Look out Annabelle there's a new doll in town!
Movie title: M3GAN
Movie description: A robotics engineer at a toy company builds a life-like doll that begins to take on a life of its own.
Date published: January 13, 2023
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 42m
Director(s): Gerard Johnstone
Actor(s): Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Ronny Chieng
Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Summary
M3GAN is a movie that takes an idea and runs with it to set you at unease with the terror of a new creepy doll giving you nightmares!
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
