Retro Puppet Master

If you've seen the Puppet Master movies and enjoy them, then yes, watch this one too. But if you are an average person who has never seen any Puppet Master movies, then I will warn you. This movie as a stand alone is terrible. Nothing about it is scary in any way. There's no gore, no blood, no heart pounding moments. You can tell it's all staged and the acting is very B rated. All in all it feels more like a play that was acted out in the theatre, then a well acted film. The story is super cheesy and cliche. But as a fan of the Puppet Master movies, it was nice to see where it all started. I was happy for an origin story.

I have seen only of one of the other Puppetmaster movies and remember that it was about an older man with his killing puppets. So I had no knowledge of the beginning of the old man but this Retro film gave me a feel for the man named Andre Toulon played by Greg Sestero. It was not a movie filled with overwhelming killing like the other film I saw but gave the characters a heart. Toulon was a young man that cared for the downtrodden. A man that was falling in love with a woman named Ilsa who likewise cared for people in need when she helps to save an old man attacked. This old man was Afzel, a sorcerer that stole the secret of life. Afzel is being hunted by servants of Sutekh because of this secret. These servants kill all of the friends and fellow puppeteers of Andre but they live again in the puppets of their own creations. Now it is a battle to the death between the servants of Sutekh and Andre and friends when Ilsa is taken hostage. The ending leaves you wondering why these friends would become so evil later in chronological time?

Retro puppet master This tale precedes the events of Puppet Master III, and explores the origins of the puppets themselves. Sadly, as grand a concept as this has- a story starting in Egypt in the late 1800's where the secrets of a God's power are stolen and then moving to a young Toulon running a puppet show in Paris in the early 1900s, the whole affair is a little too drawn out to fulfil it's potential.

It's a shame because director Decoteau has previously directed two of the stronger Puppet Master entries- part 3 (perhaps my favourite) and 6- a fun return to form after a couple of really bad sequels.

This is not to say it's a film without merit- any fan of the Puppet Master series will enjoy finding out about how it all began, the cronies of the god are fairly sinister in an Agent Smith/ Matrix kind of way, and there are a couple of new puppets to keep you entertained.

The film could be described as ambitious too, considering budgetary constraints. Creating a period piece obviously creates complications in filming, so this, as with Puppet Master III, is admirable- the simplest route was not selected.

On the downside, the puppets themselves move especially badly in this entry- it's a far cry from the beautiful stop-motion animation of earlier films- we really are talking about movement like a 4 year old's Barbie. Also considering these are meant to be early versions of the puppets we know and love, some of these wooden versions really miss the mark. Blade especially. When looking at the cover I actually assumed Dr Death's skeletal appearance was an early, and quite impressive, early version of Blade, when in fact he's this bizarre troll-faced puppet, with only the hair and costume in common. Quite sad really, as the puppets are after all the stars. And the male lead, Greg Sestero as a young Andre Toulon, is perhaps more wooden than the puppets.

Still, it's worth renting perhaps rather than buying, (I'm not sure how much replay value it has) for those who have to know how it all began. Just don't expect anything super special.

Rather uneventful (in terms of puppet-action) 7th installment of the "Puppet Master" franchise. It lacks the stop-motion action of Dave Allen (involved with the previous movies). It was nice to see the older (retro-)versions of some of the famous puppets these films are known for and it was interesting to learn something about the origin of Andre Toulon's re-animating skills. Most acting felt a bit below par. Only Brigitta Dau was decent enough. As a 'neo' Full Moon movie, this one would pass the test. As a 'horror' movie in general, I'd have to flunk it. Hence my over-all rating. Being that it's part 7 in the "Puppet Master" series, I actually thought it would be worse. And given that it's directed by David DeCoteau, I expected it to even totally suck. You just never really know anything for sure, do you? Or maybe once in a while miracles do happen after all.

The film follows on Puppet Master 3, but is actually also intended as the first film in the franchise, as it takes us back to 1902 when Andre Toulon learnt the secret to bringing the puppets to life. The majority of the film is set in 1902.

Bad acting. Bad accents. Silly dialogue. Silly plot. Very poor effects - even for a B-movie, and the puppets are stocky and lifeless. This was annoyingly bad on every level. It is also a vessel for religious mockery. You won't miss anything by not watching this installment.