My interest in M3GAN was initially nonexistent. I could care less about a killer AI doll in a horror movie starring a child. And frankly, the trailer looks dumb, with M3GAN’s SUPER CHEERFUL cartoon voice and large glassy eyes. And just how many super cute outfits does this doll come with? No thank you. But day after day for a week I came across casual conversations and reviews mentioning how much fun the movie is. “Such a fun time in the theater!” “This movie is so much fun!” Fun Fun Fun. Well, I DO like fun. So one night, I cast my line out in hopes a spontaneous friend would want to see a late night movie on short notice. And one did. Well, I have to say, the movie was pretty dumb. But yeah, it was also, So. Much. FUN!
It was a small theater with about a dozen people and everyone was having a great time. Lots of vocal audience members playing along with the movie and laughing, and my friend and I were no exception. It was the most interactive movie experience in memory, we were drinking wine and shoveling away the popcorn and just having nonstop commentary. What a blast! Oh, what, you want to hear about the actual movie? Okay, well…
A little girl’s parents are killed and her tech brilliant aunt gifts her niece with an AI doll that is totally a test model and has not been approved by, the people who approve, like, robots or whatever. This super secret AI doll project is gifted to a ten year old who then pairs with it like some werewolf imprinting hoodoo, and then they’re all, “You’re my BEST FRIEND”. Totally normal. M3GAN of course is anything but normal and soon you can see that girlfriend has a few screws loose and goes forth on her murder spree and her love of killing, and of dance, blossoms. Then they like, stop her or whatever (or do they) and that’s the end.
Given the bonkers storyline I shouldn’t have been too surprised to learn that James Wan was the initial creative mind behind this movie idea, given his penchant for writing and directing doll movies (Saw, Dead Silence, Annabelle), and his recent descent into madness (Malignant). Wanting the film to be a horror black comedy he snags Gerard Johnstone (of the brilliant horror black comedy, Housebound). Aside from working with Wan and the undoubtedly bazillion dollars he’s making from the success of M3GAN, this ridiculous movie seems a step down for Johnstone, given that Housebound was so fantastic. But I guess, yeah, going from a director who has barely worked over the last twenty years but made one really great movie, to making a box office hit with James Wan, even if that hit is pretty silly, seems like a win. I mean, if you’re into that whole fame and fortune thing.
Many of the reviews and editorials I’ve read about M3GAN have said that the movie is essentially an allegory for absent parenting. But aside from the parents literally dying and being absent, I think the aunt is just trying her best. What I think the movie is more about is the dependent bond we create with our devices and how those bonds tend to be very toxic. Upending our mental and emotional state to some degree and causing our relationships with the physical people in our lives to be neglected and damaged. But what do I know, my best friends are cats.
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