Worry Dolls

I was initially lured in by the poster/movie cover for "The Devils Dolls" (aka "Worry Dolls"), and I had no idea what the movie was about prior to sitting down to watch it.

But let's just say that I wasn't impressed with what I witnessed here at the hands of director Padraig Reynolds.

The storyline was lacking contents that would make for an interesting story and it just started to gradually become more and more boring, and my interest and focus gradually started to slip away.

The acting in the movie wasn't particularly memorable, and I can honestly say that I can't remember a single character or performing actor in the movie. Yeah, they were just that bland. And the fact that none of the people in the movie weren't famous had nothing to do with this. But the acting talents just didn't put on a memorable performance.

So who is to blame here? The director? The acting talents? The writers? I can only speculate. I do know, however, that this movie was a wide swing and an equally wide miss. There was just nothing worthwhile to be had here in my opinion.

And for a 2016 release, then it was anything but outstanding, and it will quickly fade into oblivion. There are far better horror / thrillers available, both of 2016 release but also of course by older release dates.

"The Devils Dolls" just didn't make any noticeably dent on the screen.

'Worry Dolls' drew me into seeing it, with a cool and creepy poster, an intriguing idea and as someone with a general appreciation for horror. That it was low-budget, which from frequent personal experience is rarely a good sign due to that there are so many poor ones out there, made me though apprehensive.

Actually found 'Worry Dolls' fairly watchable, if not an easy film to rate or review. Had to think long and hard about what my thoughts were and how to articulate them. 'Worry Dolls' is not great, or good, has a fair share of problems (fairly big ones too) and doesn't do enough with its potential, which was hardly small. There are however some decent, even good, qualities in 'Worry Dolls', at least it wasn't intelligence insulting or inept (unlike some films seen recently) and the potential is not completely squandered.

Lets start with the positives. The scenery is very atmospheric, likewise with the very nice way it's shot. The music is suitably spooky and quirky and doesn't distract at all from the atmosphere, while not exactly enhancing it.

'Worry Dolls' is another example of a film that started off very promisingly. There are some genuinely scary and suspenseful moments and the atmosphere has creepiness.

However, the story does feel over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained. The more 'Worry Dolls' progressed, the duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary, and too many characters are too sketchy. Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into it.

Acting is never amateurish, there has been far worse acting before and since, but nobody is good let alone note-worthy.

Dialogue can be stilted while the pace is uneven, dragging in some of the second half. Found the supposedly shocking moments not so surprising or scary, due to the excessive obviousness and the lack of tension and suspense, and the end felt not much of a climax.

In summary, not unwatchable but unremarkable. 4/10 Bethany Cox

A girl is held captive in some abandoned building. She manages to free herself while her captor is somewhere praying while holding some creepy little figurines. When he hears the girl he puts the figures away in a box and cloth bag and goes chasing after her with his drill that has a giant bit reminiscent of The Slumber Party Massacre--one of my favorite movies. As she escapes the building, she runs into a cop who's looking for her. That allows our villain to put to drill to some very good use. But another cop shows up and kills him. Now this is a great intro! While the cops are in the car some scary lady appears demanding the cops give her box with the figurines. Of course it's evidence so they can't give it to her. Yet somehow the box ends up in the hands of the cop's daughter and estranged wife, who has some crafts store. The girl makes some pendants and bracelets with the creepy figurines which for some reason all the customer find so cool and by them all up right away. The girl keeps one of them though.

Sure enough, one guy who gets a figurine pendant from his girlfriend goes nuts after becoming very pale at a convenience store and kills the worker there and is shot by the owner afterwards. Not only that, but he leaves a bloody sign painted in blood. This intrigues the cops because it's the sign that the serial killer from the intro used.

Next, the cop's daughter goes pale and nuts and kills the beautiful family Rottweiler. She's then quickly taken to the hospital where the problem is initially attributed to her epilepsy.

Then a family friend gives another figurine pendant to her husband who goes bonkers, kills the gardener and then attacks the wife just as the cop arrives. When the cop finds the figurine he decides to visit the crazy woman from before who wanted the box. Turns out she adopted the abandoned serial killer when he was a child. The figurines, or worry dolls or more accurately translated, sorrow dolls, come from Guatemalan lore and are designed to remove someone's sorrows and pains. Her grandparents were from Guatemala. But in the case of the serial killer since he was innocent and yet consumed with hate, the sorrow dolls ended up transmitting the hate. The solution is for the cop and his sidekick to collect all the dolls with the box and deliver them to her by dawn. He succeeds but there's a twist.

Devil's Dolls won me over with the brutal intro. Unfortunately, it doesn't keep up the intensity probably for budgetary reasons. We could have used at least one more doll/killer/victim. For some reason it doesn't focus enough, literally, on the dolls. They are small and creepy but the camera doesn't zoom in at any point, and for some reason no one looks at them carefully, even though they are unusual and striking. The wonderful intro credit scene featuring sights of Mississippi plus the dolls themselves which have some wooden structure reminded me of the first season of True Detective. I found the script smarter than usual. It handles for instance the relationship between the cop, his (ex)wife, and her new guy very well. The background of the dolls is also interesting. Casting is strong, most of the ladies are attractive. Christopher Wiehl who multitasked as producer and writer as well, occasionally delivers an unconvincing performance as the detective.

I found that this movie delivers more than most horror movies these days. And it's the stuff that I like--strong kills, a novel deeper story, it features a Rottweiler who can't escape the usual dog fate in movies. One nice touch is that the filmmakers thank the audience at the end for watching the movie, something I wonder why not more do. I highly recommend Devil's Dolls, it's better than the score here would lead you to believe.

A serial killer leaves behind a box of "worry dolls" after he is killed by cops. Basically, you tell your worries to a worry doll and supposedly it takes them into itself thus liberating you. Anyhow (yawn), the dolls (4 or 5, I believe) accidentally get distributed while in transit to police headquarters. Not a good thing for the new owners whose fears and insecurities become amplified to paranoia by the dolls.

The good news: Movie could have been longer. But don't take this to mean it was a terrible movie. It was just a straight-forward, "nothing new or surprising" movie. Once you learn about the dolls in the earlier part of the film, your brain just coasts thru some bloody, but unremarkable deaths until the end where there is a little bit of the unexpected. Before I close, let me say this: A human being on fire is not funny. But I think that if in a movie said human is made to run a considerable distance while aflame....well...you know. I'm only human, folks! Love, Boloxxxi.

Padraig Reynolds keeps with the same visual and directing style that played out in rural community horror fashion in "Rites Of Spring". That whole small town lives with their super evil occult issues. "Worry Dolls" doesn't quite give as exciting and well developed story the way his debut feature gives, but it keeps with a familiar creepy cult, black magic motif. Except in this story the occult, supernatural is more developed and defined. With "Rites Of Spring" it was a more subtle hint to the Sowing Season with more pagan inspiration.

"Worry Dolls" is a wicked, and paranormal curse nightmare that gives good deadpan mixed with American Gothic flare. Unfortunately the suspense and energy is very low when it comes to getting the story off the ground. The emotion and atmosphere are their but the direction and character drama just never gets up there to meet this great, and chillingly good slice of occult horror. The cast give good performances, but compared to "Rites Of Spring", "Worry Dolls" feels more Charles Band than Ti West, not that that is a bad thing, just saying compared to films similar to "Worry Dolls" like "House Of The Devil" and "Nothing To Fear".

Now the special effects are beasts of another Hell! The blood splatter, and brutality was great, visceral slices of awesome. The opening scene honestly, I felt like I needed to go check to make sure no blood splashed on me. Great scene. I enjoyed all the horror scenes with the blunt, brutal deaths. Blood, blood, blood, every kill was crimson. The sound effects, and the musical score weren't as memorable as the special effects, but they do their job to keep the pace and attitude of "Worry Dolls" dark, and sinister. And the creature effects, although more like Haunted Attraction level artistry, created some freaky, evil faces.

Overall, "Worry Dolls" is a bit disappointing, especially when comparing it to Reynolds' first film, but does have some cool stuff happening throughout the film. You will find yourself wondering on to other things during the long character building scenes. Still just when you feel you drifted too far a brutal, blood staining event takes place and snaps you back into the depth of the horror in "Worry Dolls:" Definitely check this one out if you are keen to Padraig Reynolds style, I liked enough about the film based on concept and kills to wanna add it to my collection. But take note that the horror vibe doesn't really have full strength through the whole film, like the thrills, it comes and goes.