Child's Play

Child's Play (1988)

  • 68% of critics liked it
    (28 reviews)

  • 61% of users liked it
    (245,445 ratings)

Child's Play seems to have been concocted by a parent who went berserk after standing in line for hours on end to purchase a Cabbage Patch doll in the early 1980s. The film opens with serial killer Brad Dourif taking refuge in a doll factory. Dourif is killed by the cops, but not before he has… More

Play Trailer

R,
Directed By
Genres
Mystery & Suspense, Horror
In Theaters
Nov 9, 1988 Wide
United Artists

Critic Reviews

  • Variety Staff, Variety

    Fun withers in stretching the thin material to feature length.

  • , Time Out

    Holland's sure handling of the suspense and shock moments lends the film a sharp and scary edge.

  • Caryn James, New York Times

    [A] clever, playful thriller.

  • Richard Harrington, Washington Post

    Director Tom Holland keeps things moving without rushing them. Unfortunately, Child's Play gets a little ugly at the end.

  • Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

    Child's Play is a cheerfully energetic horror film of the slam-bang school, but slicker and more clever than most.

Read all 21 critic reviews

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Nicki M


    I must be a bit twisted - I love this one, it always makes me laugh. Just can't take Chucky seriously. It is a really good horror, though.

  • Michael E


    Child's play follows a young boy named Andy who obtains a "Good Guy" doll for Christmas from his mom and discovers that this doll he got for Christmas may be doing things that are causing suspicion in the household after the murder of his aunt. Child's play is… More

  • Tyler R


    It's almost unreal how a movie based off a killer doll can have such a cult following. Chucky is definitely well remembered in terms of horror killers. The series itself is somewhat disjointed, but the first movie is easily the best. Child's Plat revolves around a boy named… More

  • Directors C


    Child's Play is a cult movie that doesn't deserve it's following. It has so many flaws I wouldn't know where to begin. Like how can 2 grown adults be forced to the ground by a toy? I found a lot of it laughable rather than scary. The voice acting of the doll, and… More

  • Ken S


    For what it is, it's damn good. It doesn't do anything new, but what it does do, it does well.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings

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