Okay, I’m going to be taken to task for this, but Seed of Chucky is great! The Chucky movies have been around long enough to already have gone through that awkward horror sequel phase, where the lead monster goes from truly scary to a wise-cracking comic that the audience considers to be a wacky friend. In the previous installment, Bride of Chucky, the producers decided to embrace the killer doll’s ridiculous nature and emphasize the comedy. It worked on some levels, and introduced his delightful female counterpart Tiffany (voiced by Jennifer Tilly), but didn’t quite find the right balance. This time the gloves are off as the writers go for complete trash, paying homage to classic guilty pleasures by the likes of John Waters (who even makes a gleeful appearance). It’s filled to the brim with rapid-fire spoofery and gags, reminding me of some of the best episodes of The Simpsons. As a put-upon husband and father, Chucky seems somewhat Homer-esque at times. There are so many layers of subtext and genre in-jokes that the movie demands repeated viewing. While I didn’t expect great acting from a B-rate schlock series, the three dummies (Chucky, Tiffany and their new child Glen/Glenda) are actually very deep characters. Seed has the most impressive puppetry work I’ve seen, with believably life-like subtleties. On the other hand, it’s the human actors that come off as wooden, filling stock roles while waiting to be killed. Tilly is the one exception, getting completely into her exaggerated, career-skewering caricature.

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