January was a dumping ground for terrible horror movies, but M3GAN seems to be breaking the curse.
For years of my life, I have avoided horror movies. There are still some things I don’t want to touch on, but I’m getting closer to the genre now.
But I love fun, goofy camp horror movies like M3GAN.
The film begins with a hilarious advertisement for the fictional PurrPetual Petz. Unfortunately, this obsession with toys leads to an accident in which young Cady loses her parents and is forced to live with her Aunt Gemma.
We laughed and cried during the first three minutes of the movie. impressive feat.
Unaccustomed to having children around the house, Gemma, who works in a toy factory, brings home an advanced doll, M3GAN, to help Caddy.
M3GAN is designed to act as Cady’s best friend and protect her no matter what. You can probably see where this is going. Like most movies that revolve around artificial intelligence, when the limits of “At All Costs” are tested, things go awry.
The features of M3GAN are brought to life by various practical computer-generated effects. She is played by young New Zealand actress Amy Donald, but the exact location where Amy ends and M3GAN begins is a secret.
This is not the only connection with kiwi. Director Gerald Johnstone (Housebound) directed the film, which was partially shot in Auckland just before lockdown at the end of 2021.
This movie is definitely more fun than scary. There are moments of tension and terror, but there is never too much gore, and mood-boosting fun moments are never far away.
M3GAN feels destined to become a horror icon for decades to come. It’s been a long time since movies like Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger have been milked for years with diminishing returns, but part of me really wants M3GAN to be it for the new generation.
