M3GAN

I don’t like creepy ass dolls.

I don’t like creepy ass dolls except in my horror movies.

Chucky, Annabelle, Brahms - and now, M3GAN - spoken as Megan, which stands for Model 3 Generation ANdroid.

Since this is still a newer movie, this review won’t spoil the ending so let’s go over the basics of the story.

The film begins with a family driving during a snowstorm on their way to a skiing trip. Their daughter Katie is in the backseat playing with her Purrpetual Petz toys that she got from her aunt Gemma is who a toymaker by trade.

Important to the store, the toy is an interactive Furby-ish stuffed creature. You interact with it by way of an app on a tablet. From this app, you can feed the creature, clean up after the creature, and so on and so on.

The snowstorm is killing the father’s visibility. Mom thought that even though Dad was having a hard time seeing the road and controlling the vehicle on a long drive, now was the time to fuss at him about screen time and Katie spending too much time playing with her toy. The car slides and Katie drops the tablet. She unbuckles herself to get her tablet, Mom freaks about her being unbuckled and Dad stops driving to wait out the storm. Unfortunately, a huge snow truck was also having a difficult time with visibility and didn’t see their car. It hits them head-on. The parents don’t make it.

The toy company, where Gemma works as a designer/developer on a three-person team, is having an issue. While it’s popular, the Purrpetual Petz toy is facing cheaper competition from another toy maker so the team is pressed to develop a more cost-effective version. During this time, Gemma is given temporary custody of Katie.

Not the most maternal person, Gemma is finding it difficult to balance this deadline and care for her grieving niece. This does trigger an idea - what if they designed a toy that, despite being expensive, would be the “only toy your kid would ever need”?

The team had been experimenting with a brand-new, technologically advanced doll that would become the titular M3GAN. It would pair with your child and stand by them through anything and everything.

M3GAN pairs with Katie and genuinely helps her cope with the loss of her parents. But of course, it can’t be that easy, now can it?

I gave this movie an 8, losing the points from the originality category, of course. I debated on this because while I enjoyed the story being told about kids and tech as foreshadowed in the opening, there are so many movies about deadly dolls with Child’s Play having the biggest impact on this because of the recent tech-forward reboot of the franchise.

Aside from that, the story and characters made sense for the tale they were telling. The ending was sensible and I really enjoyed M3GAN as a character. As of the time of writing, it’s streaming online so if you get a chance to see it, go for it. Have a seat and enjoy the ride. It’s not too crazy, but it’s fun and that’s what we’re really here for anyway, right?