Meet your new best friend: a technologically advanced piece of artificial intelligence that links to your child and can respond to their every need. A doll that does the little things for you (so you don’t have to!). And get this — she only gets better and more efficient the closer it gets to your child. While some may refer to her as the greatest invention of the 21st century, a piece of engineering genius, most people just call her by name.

So parents, cut off some of your slack and meet M3GAN. Although, make sure to never keep her out of your sight… and always watch your back.

Kicking off the year of 2023 releases is the Blumhouse horror comedy M3GAN. After a group of toy engineers struggle to create a working prototype for a new toy, it’s the ripe idea of Gemma (Allison Williams of “Get Out” fame) that helps them get on the ground running again.

Following the death of her sister, Gemma begins to look after her 8-year-old niece, Cady (Violet McGraw). In the wake of her niece’s grief and inability to connect with the world around her, Gemma is inspired to create the prototype for M3GAN. In the process of M3GAN being unveiled to the world, Cady becomes the first test subject for the doll. The two form an unbreakable friendship and Gemma finds herself facing dire consequences when M3GAN assumes the role of Cady’s primary caretaker.

While the film’s clever marketing campaign has certainly made waves online, especially gearing towards young adults, it’s refreshing to see that the film’s actual tone lives up to what was promised: campy and embracing its concept to the fullest degree (or at least as much as the PG-13 rating allows for). Whether it be watching M3GAN break into a dance or spout some cheeky one-liners while stalking her next victim, the film’s biggest asset is its ability to not take itself too seriously. As a result, the experience watching M3GAN is nothing short of tongue-in-cheek fun.

That’s not to say that M3GAN falls short of having disturbing moments, though, as its balance of horror and comedy is particularly impressive. On top of having lots of hilarious moments and acknowledging the ridiculousness of the film’s concept and main character, director Gerard Johnstone also manages to create some truly unsettling moments of tension and explore some interesting themes. Our overreliance on technology, especially when it comes to the act of raising a child, becomes evidently clear when Gemma finds herself unable to connect with her niece following the introduction of M3GAN to her life. As a doll, M3GAN always seems to say the things that will reassure Cady for the time being, but what she is never able to provide is a true human connection, or to allow Cady to fully process her grief in her own ways.

The film also manages to poke fun at technology, whether it be through comedic lines or sharp editing choices that capture the essence of the film’s world. It’s not that the ideas the script is exploring are necessarily new, but it’s exploration is fun and clever enough to warrant a watch.

Williams turns in another solid performance as she perfectly understands the tone of M3GAN. In one of the film’s funniest scenes, a therapist studies Gemma’s interactions with Cady, suggesting that the two play a game. The only toys that Gemma has are her precious collectible items that aren’t meant to be played with, but in an attempt to make a good impression and connect with her niece, reluctantly gives Cady a toy against her own ego. The remarkable comedic timing that Williams showcases in this scene is just one of her many talents that help bring her character to life.

While M3GAN is mostly a horror success, it isn’t without some downfalls that hold it back from true greatness. The film had some reshoots done to bring the film’s rating down to PG-13, largely taking inspiration from Sam Raimi’s horror comedy Drag Me to Hell, which also had the same rating. Unfortunately for M3GAN, there are certainly moments where the horror feels too restrained and held back, leaving Johnstone to rely more on quick jump scares and cheap cutaway moments that stifle some of the film’s most tense moments. Some of the dialogue at times feels unnatural as well, especially in the more somber opening act of the film before the true horror of it all is unleashed. Thankfully, once it becomes clear that M3GAN is a doll not to be trusted, the dialogue becomes more self-aware and clever, allowing the second and third acts to rack up both the tension and the laughs.

The term “camp” is one that has come to be overused when describing recent films. Thankfully, the team behind M3GAN fully understood what campy really means (especially in the realm of a horror film), while still having the narrative restraint to allow more dramatic moments to come to fruition as well. With the overly positive reception the film has been met with so far, along with its inevitable box office success on just a $12 million budget, M3GAN seems to have already solidified itself as a cult classic favorite for many years to come.

Review Courtesy of Matt Minton