Does ‘Cult of Chucky’ bring new blood into the franchise?

For a franchise that has been around for almost 30 years, the “Child’s Play” film series has succeeded at staying fresh. While the quality of all seven individual films can be debated, it is hard to say that each doesn’t stand out from one another.

Now, just in time for the Halloween season, the seventh film in the franchise, “Cult of Chucky” is out on Netflix. Can it continue the franchise’s streak of coming up with new ideas, or is seven this series’s unlucky number?

Taking place four years after the events of the previous installment, “Curse of Chucky,” we see that returning main character, Nica (played by Fiona Dourif), has been recovering in a mental institution. At this point, she seems to be doing much better and has been made to believe that she, not Chucky, was responsible for her family’s murders. However, things soon take a terrifying turn when Chucky’s wife, Tiffany, brings Chucky to the institution and patients start dying one by one. From there, it becomes a heart-pounding race as Nica must try to evade the killer doll again, but a new ability Chucky has learned may make things harder then she anticipated.

“Cult of Chucky” offers a welcome new pace to the franchise. Whereas the previous installment went for a more traditional horror tone with a haunted house atmosphere, “Cult” aims to be more of a psychological thriller. The film skips trying to build suspense that Chucky is alive which, at this point in the franchise, is a great choice. Rather, it cleverly paces itself so that more time is spent getting into the mind of the characters and seeing their points of view.

Nica especially takes a very unique turn with this installment. Unlike most protagonists in the “Child’s Play” films who simply try to stay out of Chucky’s way, Nica’s connection with the doll is expanded upon within this film.

The film’s tone also adds to its unique spot in the franchise. Often times, trying to blend in elements of thrills and comedy doesn’t work for many horror films, including several installments in the “Child’s Play” series. However, here it is done very well and never feels like it is leaning too heavily towards one side of the spectrum. The horror elements have a great pace to them and some hauntingly dreamlike visuals that prove rather effective. The comedy lands surprisingly well, as Chucky is given plenty of stand-out moments to shine.

However, this freshness to the franchise is also where a lot of the problems arise. The biggest problem with “Cult of Chucky” is that the film is almost tailor-made for fans of the franchise. Major plot elements, characters and references fail to hit their mark unless you have seen almost every previous installment which, for new viewers, might take them out of the experience.

This is not the film’s only flaw. Even though Nica proves to be a compelling character and Chucky is entertaining as always, the rest of the characters fall flat, with many of the new ones only acting as tools to be killed off later on. The older characters who do return, while nice to see them again, add very little to the story. And finally, while the practical doll effects employed throughout the film have improved since “Curse of Chucky,” there are still moments when the phoniness is noticable.

While “Cult of Chucky” is certainly not for those unfamiliar with the series, as a seventh installment in a horror franchise, it is very admirable. With its creative ideas, well-executed tone, some fun thrills and a fascinating main character, this is a film that is sure to be a fun treat for Chucky fans. However, for those looking for genuinely chilling horror or are not fans of the franchise, this is not the film for you.