Dolly Dearest – Closer to M3gan than Chucky?

On the surface, Dolly Dearest may feel like ‘the Chucky’ rip-off, but I would argue there is much more going on.

The connection is clear, given the whole ancient soul possession plot motif plus the work of Ed Gale, who also doubled Chucky in various Child’s Play movies

Having said this, I would say Dolly Dearest has as much in common with the recent smash hit M3gan.

We have a connection between the possessed doll and Jessica, the youngest daughter, who takes a shine to Dolly.

Denise Crosby provides decent support as mum Marilyn, who goes pretty crazy when she realises that Dolly has sinister intentions for her daughter. Rip Torn plays it largely straight, but instead of feeling like he’s in another film, he strangely works quite well as an archaeologist who discovers the dark Mayan origins of Dolly’s evil.

Dolly does have some ambition too, toying (excuse the pun) with the idea of multiple possessed dolls and causing absolute chaos.

The body count is disappointingly low, but Dolly does have one excellent kill sequence when maid Alva is stabbed in the shoulder before being pushed into a vat of water with some electrics.

Dolly Dearest is at its best when it cuts loose and Dolly, with a cringeworthy unidentified accent, which only gets funnier as the film goes on.

Chucky it may not be, but Dolly Dearest is well worth your time.