The Devil's Dolls

The Devil's Dolls
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Padraig Reynolds
Produced by Padraig Reynolds, Greg Haggart, Danny Kolker and Christopher Wiehl
Written by Danny Kolker and Christopher Wiehl
Starring
Music by Holly Amber Church
Cinematography Adam Sampson
Edited by
  • Ed Marx
Distributed by StudioCanal UK (UK)
IFC Films (USA)
Release date
  • June 27, 2016 (2016-06-27) (United Kingdom)
  • September 16, 2016 (2016-09-16) (United States)
Running time
 85 minutes
Country United States
Language English

The Devil's Dolls, originally titled Worry Dolls, is a 2016 American horror film that was directed by Padraig Reynolds.[1] It stars Christopher Wiehl as a detective that must find a way to free his daughter from the influence of cursed worry dolls that cause their owners to commit horrific crimes. The film was first released on June 27, 2016 in the United Kingdom and was retitled for its American release.[2]

Synopsis

The film opens with a young woman, Amber, fleeing from Henry, a serial killer. She is almost caught and murdered, but is saved by the appearance of Matt, a detective that shoots and kills Henry before he can accomplish this. Matt and his partner Darcy find a box containing four cursed worry dolls, which belonged to Henry. They're approached by Della, an old woman that raised Henry after his father died, who unsuccessfully tries to claim the dolls, which are confiscated as evidence. After leaving the crime scene Matt visits his ex-wife Amy, but unbeknownst to him their young daughter Chloe finds the worry dolls and takes them for herself. Unaware of their origin, Chloe turns the dolls into necklaces and sells them at her mother's store. Every person that purchases the necklaces will become possessed and becomes violent, committing bloody murder. This also includes Chloe herself, as her mother bought one of the dolls for her daughter - eventually resulting in Chloe's hospitalization after killing a dog.

Meanwhile Matt and his partner have been following along with the two worry doll related crimes so far, discovering how they tie together after finding evidence linking them to Henry. They realize that all of the perpetrators had purchased worry dolls from Chloe and that she had taken them from Matt. They meet up with Della, who tells them that the dolls were once capable of strong healing magic, but became cursed after she gave them to a young Henry, as his sorrow and darkness from his father's death corrupted them. Della cautions them that they must bring Chloe and the dolls to her in order to remove the curse from the child and the dolls. Now aware that they must collect all the dolls, Darcy and Matt begin looking for the final two dolls, as they had previously collected the dolls from the prior two murders. They're successful in collecting the third doll and halting a murder, but Darcy dies while retrieving the fourth doll from Ethan, Amy's boyfriend.

After collecting all four worry dolls Matt brings them and Chloe to Della, only to discover that the old woman has no intention of saving his daughter. She explains that she wants to cleanse the dolls so they can become forces of good once more, but that doing so would require Chloe's death, due to the presence of Henry's darkness inside her. Unwilling to let this happen, Matt struggles with Della and manages to throw the worry dolls into the fireplace. Della tries to retrieve the dolls, but sets herself on fire in the process and runs into a nearby lake to put herself out. Matt is happy to discover that his daughter has survived and is apparently no longer possessed. Before the film ends, the viewers are shown that Della has also survived.

Cast

Release

The film was first released on home video on June 27, 2016 in the United Kingdom, where it was titled Worry Dolls.[2] The title was changed for its release in the United States, to The Devil's Dolls.[3] On September 16, 2016 in the United States the film was given a home video release on VOD as well as a limited theatrical release.[3]

Reception

Critical reception for The Devil's Dolls was mixed.[4][5] The Los Angeles Times panned the movie, calling it "a pastiche of derivative nonsense that only reminds you of the better films (“The Shining,” “The Exorcist”) that it seeks to copy. The acting and special effects are terrible, but unfortunately not terrible enough to be a true camp classic. It’s just a listless, routine exercise in religious horror, infused with a whiff of the exotic that tends toward the xenophobic."[6] Michael Gingold of Rue Morgue was also dismissive of the film, as he felt that it was "splattery but unsatisfying".[7]

Fangoria was more positive, rating the movie at three out of four skulls and stating that it was "a great calling card for the director and with a tightly paced script from Danny Kolker and the film’s star, Christopher Wiehl, viewers are offered something quite original and shocking."[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Padraig Reynolds' Worry Dolls Renamed The Devil's Dolls; New Trailer, Artwork, and Exclusive Images". Dread Central. 2016-08-08. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  2. 1 2 "'Worry Dolls' Joins a UK Cult". Bloody Disgusting!. 2016-06-22. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  3. 1 2 "Watch: Exclusive "Hallway Horror" Clip from THE DEVIL'S DOLLS - Daily Dead". Daily Dead. 2016-09-16. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  4. ↑ "Film Review: The Devil's Dolls (2016)". HorrorNews.net. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  5. ↑ McDonagh, Maitland (September 15, 2016). "Film Review: The Devil's Dolls". Film Journal International. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  6. ↑ Walsh, Katie (September 15, 2016). "'The Devil's Dolls' isn't horrible enough to be fun". LA Times. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  7. ↑ Gingold, Michael (September 16, 2016). "Movie Review: THE DEVIL'S DOLLS is splattery but unsatisfying". Rue Morgue. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
  8. ↑ Hanley, Ken W. (September 7, 2016). ""THE DEVIL'S DOLLS" (Film Review)". FANGORIA. Retrieved 2017-02-27.
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