DOLLED UP FOR DEATH

 

MOVIE
M3GAN
Director Gerard Johnstone
Review Ray Chan

After a car accident claims the lives of her parents, a young girl named Cady is looked after by her aunt Gemma, an accomplished robotics builder. 
    She takes on the guardianship role reluctantly, as it comes at a time when she is under duress with work at toy company Funki.
    Gemma needs to convince her boss that her follow-up to the first interactive toy she invented, Purrpetual Petz, is going to be one of the most advanced ever put on the market. But it’s not perfected yet and some glitches need to be addressed. 
    Cady’s arrival disrupts Gemma’s focus, speeding up the prototype process and avoiding thorough testing. The final product, resembling a life-like girl, is named M3GAN (short for Model 3 Generative Android), and is duly activated and ready to be Cady’s best friend. 
    Swiftly, it becomes clear that M3GAN is ready to go to any lengths to protect Cady from emotional or physical harm, even murder and violence. And there are plenty of offenders who pose potential threats. What transpires is a delightfully unhinged cautionary tale about technology taking the lead in parenting.
    From the onset, it’s clear that Cady’s well-being is in jeopardy because the people who are supposed to care for her – Gemma, her laboratory peers and her employer – are frankly more interested in profiteering from the mechanical mannequin rather than the orphan’s welfare. 
    Taking the time to actually listen and help Cady is initially seen as a burden, so Gemma uses M3GAN as a defacto babysitter and companion, a task it carries out with aplomb, even singing a Sia song as a lullaby.
    The campiness that shores up the movie is intentional and genuinely funny. Sad to say, audiences these days find more mirth in grisly scenes than revulsion.
    Aside from the script, there are several other factors that make the story work. 
    There are committed performances from everyone in the cast, especially Amie Donald, the young dancer behind M3GAN’s physical performance, which includes a maniacal trot on all fours and a pirouette routine that has become a viral sensation. The title character herself is a combination of Donald’s performance, animatronics, and puppeteering, as well as a vocal performance from Jenna Davis.
    M3GAN could have been a tad scarier, but it’s a fun ride nonetheless. Come for the promise of a killer android with Lady Penelope eyes, and stay for a fun time at the movies, complete with a musical number of two.
    Forget Chucky or Annabelle. There's a new horror doll in town and she's so much more fun to watch. By the end, you might wish M3GAN was your new bestie too.

#M3gan @UniversalpicsAU