M3GAN

It’s a lovely feeling to be kickstarting 2023 with a movie that feels like an instant midnight classic – one that lives up to its enormous hype with hilarity and horror in abundance. 

Following the most meme-worthy marketing campaign in recent times, Gen Z’s Chucky has arrived in the form of M3GAN, a title that now makes sense upon learning that it stands for “Model 3 Generation Android”. Being a robot is what distinguishes this killer humanoid from her Child’s Play counterpart and is part of what makes this feature so engaging: in addition to being so funny and creepy, this is a story with cutting social commentary and genuine heart.

She’s designed by brilliant inventor Gemma (Alison Williams in a role only she could inhabit), whose unofficial test subject becomes her niece, Cady (Violet McGraw), who finds M3GAN’s pastoral guidance and emotional connection fills the void left by the death of her parents in a car accident. M3GAN’s perspective of life and love is surprisingly mature for an AI companion, though she begins to wield her influence too powerfully when her designated status as Cady’s protector results in murder, beginning with a brutal attack on the family’s annoying neighbours.

Events cause friction between the inventor and her creation, as the latter becomes more independent, taking out anyone who’s even remotely a threat to Cady’s happiness. M3GAN makes a particularly salient point, however, when she states that violence as retaliation is something that has long predated AI, so why are mankind not focused on being better versions of ourselves instead of fearing the rise of robots?

M3GAN is as entertaining as expected, coming from a team including Gerard Johnstone (director of Housebound) and Akela Cooper (writer of Malignant), two supremely under-appreciated horror gems. Their PG-13 execution teases a superior, scarier unrated cut, but they push the boundaries as far as they can and brilliantly complement the savagery with a highly self-aware, irreverent tone that’s highlighted by the Terminator/Annabelle hybrid singing Sia’s Titanium right after implying a young victim of hers has gone to hell. 

Though not as outright shocking as it could be (until the unrated version comes out), M3GAN is a totally fun horror-comedy in the vein of Happy Death Day or Freaky. 

Musanna Ahmed

M3GAN is released nationwide on 13^th January 2023.

Watch the trailer for M3GAN here: