Review: Look out, Buzz. There's another good toy movie out

There are two movies opening this weekend that feature iconic anthropomorphic dolls. Be very careful which one you choose.

"Toy Story 4" has the usual gang of lovable toys led by Woody and Buzz. (Bring tissues.) Then there's the remake of "Child's Play," which has Chucky, the freckle-faced homicidal doll who likes stabbing things. (Bring a strong stomach.)

The reviews for "Toy Story 4" are pretty good and you might be surprised to find that the "Child's Play " reboot is actually pretty solid, too. It's a winking, self-aware horror movie that will make you laugh even when things are drenched in blood.

From left, Gabriel Bateman, Aubrey Plaza and Mark Hamill, cast members in "Child's Play," pose together at the premiere of the film at the ArcLight Hollywood, Wednesday, June 19, 2019, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris PizzelloInvisionAP)

The original "Child's Play" came out in 1988 and featured the nightmare-creating concept of your dolls coming to life and harming you. It was a fairly straight-ahead horror flick with a dash of commentary on consumerism. But the franchise — six sequels — gradually grew camp, most recently with "Cult of Chucky" in 2017.

The reboot this summer has sidestepped Chuck's real dad — the writer and director Don Mancini — and freshened the concept for 2019: Chucky is no longer possessed. Now he's a cloud-connected, self-learning AI doll with wide powers: He controls the lights, TVs, Roomba, cars and other electronic devices. Underneath the gleeful horror is a commentary on our dependence and the interconnectivity of our devices.

Director Lars Klevberg and screenwriter Tyler Burton Smith don't pretend the killer doll trope hasn't been done before. They fully dive into it, gently mocking the genre as they exploit it and signal to the audience all along what they're doing. "You're my best friend," says Chucky when he's taken out of the box. To which his new owner naturally says: "It's kind of creepy."

This image released by Orion Pictures shows the character Chucky from the horror film, "Child's Play." (Orion via AP)

This time, Chucky is created by the nefarious Kaslan Corporation, which has a range of interconnected products. A sweatshop worker in Vietnam tasked with assembling the dolls disconnects one of its security protocols in a fit of pique. It ends up in the hands of a single mother (Aubrey Plaza) and her lonely son, Andy (Gabriel Bateman). Chucky tries to understand human behavior but stumbles at subtlety. He's imprinted to Andy and lashes out at anything that Andy dislikes, whether that's the family cat or his mom's new boyfriend.

The filmmakers have left little Easter eggs throughout the film, from references to "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" to "Office Space." They have a jokey tendency to use old-school lightning whenever they want to signal something ominous is happening. The final climactic fight scene happens in a dark basement sporting industrial spinning fans with light and smoke pouring out of them. At one point, there's a "Star Wars" joke that is extra funny because Mark Hamill is voicing Chucky.

There's so much tongue-in-cheek humor that even though the body count mounts — and some in the audience may be surprised that death comes to animals and beloved figures alike — there's really no dread. Somehow, despite "Silence of the Lambs"-level carnage, the gore level doesn't shock, inoculated as we are by being in on the joke. Riffing off that, composer Bear McCreary leans in on "Omen"-like, ever-building horror music.

Mark Hamill, left, and Gabriel Bateman, cast members in "Child's Play," pose together at the premiere of the film at the ArcLight Hollywood, Wednesday, June 19, 2019, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris PizzelloInvisionAP)

The film's tautness comes and goes, to be honest, never really building to edge-of-your-seat stuff. And it could have had more glee messing with our love of digital convenience. But it takes care of fans of the franchise. The doll comes up with the name Chucky for itself, even though plenty of other options are available. It's owning its past.

Plaza, known for her comedic chops on "Parks and Recreation," shows off a winning dramatic side, while Bateman proves to be an actor to watch, able to play alienated teen, surrogate brother, aghast victim and vengeful son. Brian Tyree Henry once again makes the most of his small role as a kindly cop. And Hamill goes to his creepiest place to say things like "Are we having fun now?"

Surprisingly, we are having fun. While most of the oxygen will be taken up this weekend with "Toy Story 4," credit goes to "Child's Play" for turning in a solid valentine to the darker side of what "Toy Story" also does — including movie posters that drag the bigger franchise.

Brian Tyree Henry, a cast member in "Child's Play," poses at the premiere of the film at the ArcLight Hollywood, Wednesday, June 19, 2019, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris PizzelloInvisionAP)

"Child's Play," an Orion Pictures release, is rated R for "bloody horror violence and language throughout." Running time: 88 minutes. Three stars out of four.

MPAA definition of R: Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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JERUSALEM (AP) — Yemen's Houthi rebels on Saturday claimed shooting down another of the U.S. military's MQ-9 Reaper drones, airing footage of parts that corresponded to known pieces of the unmanned aircraft.

The Houthis said they shot down the Predator with a surface-to-air missile, part of a renewed series of assaults this week by the rebels after a relative lull in their pressure campaign over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Bryon J. McGarry, a Defense Department spokesperson, acknowledged to The Associated Press on Saturday that “a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 drone crashed in Yemen.” He said an investigation was underway, without elaborating.

The Houthis described the downing as happening Thursday over their stronghold in the country's Saada province.

Footage released by the Houthis included what they described as the missile launch targeting the drone, with a man off-camera reciting the Houthi's slogan after it was hit: “God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.”

The footage included several close-ups on parts of the drone that included the logo of General Atomics, which manufactures the drone, and serial numbers corresponding with known parts made by the company.

Since the Houthis seized the country’s north and its capital of Sanaa in 2014, the U.S. military has lost at least five drones to the rebels counting Thursday's shootdown — in 2017, 2019, 2023 and this year.

Reapers, which cost around $30 million apiece, can fly at altitudes up to 50,000 feet and have an endurance of up to 24 hours before needing to land.

The drone shootdown comes as the Houthis launch attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, demanding Israel ends the war in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians there. The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 others hostage.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sank another since November, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration.

Houthi attacks have dropped in recent weeks as the rebels have been targeted by a U.S.-led airstrike campaign in Yemen. Shipping through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has declined because of the threat. American officials have speculated that the rebels may be running out of weapons as a result of the U.S.-led campaign against them and after firing drones and missiles steadily in the last months. However, the rebels have renewed their attacks in the last week.

A Houthi supporter raises a mock rocket during a rally against the U.S. and Israel and to support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, April. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)