Director Sonny Laguna, Tommy Wiklund
Genre Horror
Cast Thomas Lennon, Barbara Crampton, Michael Paré, Charlyne Yi
Rating Unrated
Release Date August 17th, 2018 (Limited & On-Demand)
“All hell breaks loose when a strange force animates the puppets up for auction at a convention, setting them on a bloody killing spree that’s motivated by an evil as old as time.”
From directors Sonny Laguna and Tommy Wiklund, Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich is the latest from the cult horror franchise that burst onto the scene in 1989 with the original Puppet Master (burst may be a strong word, but it sounds kinda cool). Now these movies are FAR from perfect, but they are a guilty pleasure for fans of B-movie horror and I have always enjoyed them. It took awhile but I finally ponied up the $9.99 + tax and bought the film on Blu-ray so that I could try and relive my teenage years or whenever the hell I discovered these films (I honestly can’t remember). I will say that I do own the others in the form of a cheapo DVD collection I stumbled upon one Halloween.
First of all, Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich is not scary, I mean not at all. If the intention was for this movie to be scary, they messed up big. But with that being said, I’m not naive enough to think that was actually the intention considering the over-the-top nature of the film as a whole as well as the cast consisting mostly of actors known only for their comedic roles. As a fan of the original films, I went into this one knowing the premise and I felt like they did a good job tying in the backstory to sort of bring things full-circle. Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich essentially starts more or less at the beginning and then takes it to present day, skipping over the events of the other films for the most part, so it’s not necessarily a remake as much as it is a let’s all go see what these creepy puppets are up to even though deep down we know damn well the little bastards will likely eat your face off if given the chance.
Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich is honestly a solid film for what it is and I was pleased with it for the most part. I sort of knew what to expect so how ridiculous it was at times didn’t surprise me, but I will say it did have a few slow parts. It does stray somewhat from the formula of the other films which are darker and more on the horror spectrum, albeit corny at times due to the vast majority of no-name actors. The films are in the realm of traditional slashers, offering up an unnecessary mix of nudity (which is appreciated) and ultra-violent and gory deaths. Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich is also from the producers of Bone Tomahawk and The Meg, contributing to how absolutely ridiculous the kills can be at times. You will also find yourself laughing at some of the ridiculous puppets that were added to the lineup for this film and the way that they end the lives of their victims. The humor is also prevalent throughout keeping the tone light aside from the excessive gore factor.
I also feel the need to point out that Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich absolutely loves the beheading kills with at least 3 or more in the film if my memory serves me, one of which where the poor bastard is taking a piss only to have his head land in the toilet while somehow his body continues peeing - makes sense. Nobody is safe in this film, including children and pregnant women so proceed with caution. I was a bit disappointed that the drill head puppets didn’t come into play until the tail end, they were always one of my favorites. Overall I found Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich to be entertaining although I do prefer the creepier original films that can make your skin crawl at times. Bottom line, if you enjoy B-movie horrors, you could do much worse. It’s also worth noting that the film is rated on the “you pretty much know what to expect from it” rating scale so keep the expectations relatively grounded and you’ll be fine.
