Curse of Chucky appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.78:1 on this Blu-Ray Disc. The transfer consistently seemed satisfying.
Sharpness was usually very good. A few wide shots looked a smidgen soft, but not to any serious degree. The vast majority of the film appeared well-defined and concise. No problems with jagged edges or shimmering occurred, and edge enhancement remained absent. In terms of print issues, no concerns materialized.
Like most modern horror movies, Curse went with a stylized palette. Much of the flick stayed with a pretty desaturated set of tones; a few brighter colors popped up in some moments but the image usually stayed chilly. Within those constraints, the hues were appropriate and well-rendered. Blacks seemed dark and tight, while shadows showed nice delineation and didn’t appear too dense. Overall, this was a positive presentation.
Similar thoughts greeted the fairly good DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Curse. The soundfield mostly delivered a mix heavy on atmosphere. Ominous noises cropped up in the side and rear speakers, and scare moments added to the track. Those elements created a nice sense of place and brought impact to the material.
Audio quality satisfied. Speech sounded crisp and distinctive, and music appeared robust and full. Effects were accurate and dynamic. Low-end response showed good thump and richness. Nothing here dazzled, but the audio merited a “B”.
When we look at the set’s extras, we discover two different versions of the film. We get an R-Rated Cut (1:34:43) and an Unrated Cut (1:36:41). What do you get from the added 118 seconds? I have no idea, as I only watched the longer version. Still, I wanted to mention that both editions appear.
After this comes an audio commentary from writer/director Don Mancini, puppeteer Tony Gardner and actor Fiona Dourif. All three sit together for this running, screen-specific look at story/character areas, camerawork and visual design, sets and locations, influences, cast and performances, effects and bringing Chucky to life, music, and related areas.
The participants deliver a strong discussion of the film. Mancini dominates, but the other two throw in useful notes as well. The chat moves at a nice pace and combines facts with humor to create an informative and enjoyable take on the movie.
Three featurettes follow. Playing with Dolls: The Making of Curse of Chucky goes for 15 minutes, 34 seconds and includes comments from Mancini, Dourif, key makeup/special makeup effects artist Douglas Morrow, assistant special makeup effects Emerson Ziffle, stunt coordinator/stunt double Rick Skene, and actors Brad Dourif, Danielle Bisutti, Jennifer Tilly, Brennan Elliott, Maitland McConnell, Alex Vincent, A Martinez, and Summer Howell. They discuss the movie’s tone and story, thoughts about cast and crew, set design, makeup and effects, stunts, and general thoughts about the franchise. Some of the info about makeup proves interesting, but this mostly acts as a banal puff piece.
Living Doll: Bringing Chucky to Life lasts eight minutes, 35 seconds and features Bisutti, McConnell, Elliott, Mancini, Gardner, Brad Dourif, Fiona Dourif, Chucky doll mechanical designer Peter Chevako, knitter Adelle Burda and stunt double Deborah Lee Carrington. We learn about all the elements required to convey Chucky on the screen. A good contrast to the fluffy “Dolls”, “Life” gives us a solid take on the subject matter.
For the final featurette, we get Voodoo Doll: The Chucky Legacy. It fills seven minutes, eight seconds and provides info from Brad Dourif, Tilly, Vincent, Bisutti, Mancini, Martinez, Fiona Dourif, and Elliott. “Legacy” gives us a look back at the franchise. Nothing memorable occurs here, but it turns into a reasonably fun overview.
Six Deleted Scenes occupy a total of six minutes, 17 seconds. Most of these seem pretty mundane, such as the one that shows Nica as she gets out of bed; it’s a passable character moment but not interesting. The rest have a little more life but not much, so don’t expect them to add material of interest.
A Gag Reel occupies one minute, 27 seconds. Some of this offers the usual silliness and mistakes, but a few alternate lines appear as well. Those make it a bit more useful than most blooper collections.
Finally, we locate some Storyboard Comparisons. With a total running time of 25 minutes, 19 seconds, these accompany four scenes: “Electrocution”, “The Attic”, “Ian’s Death” and “Nica vs. Chucky”. Mancini introduces all of them, and we then see the comparisons themselves; those show the movie in the upper left corner of the screen with the art in the lower right. I’m not a huge fan of storyboard presentations, but this one works pretty well.
The disc opens with ads for Dead in Tombstone, Machete Kills, The Purge and Bates Motel. Previews adds clips for Mama, Silent House, The Unborn, The Strangers, My Soul to Take, The Fourth Kind and Dream House. No trailer for Curse appears here.
A second disc provides a DVD copy of Curse. It also includes the commentary, the deleted scenes, the gag reel and “Playing with Dolls”.
After almost a decade, everyone’s favorite homicidal doll returns for Curse of Chucky. Though it rebounds toward the end, the flick moves too slowly and with too little suspense too much of the time to become an engaging revival of the series. The Blu-ray brings us positive picture and audio as well as a decent collection of bonus materials. The movie seems mediocre, but the Blu-ray presents it well.