M3GAN (Spoiler Free Review)

So, after hearing about all the hyperbole of this movie Megan I decided to finally check it out thanks to its availability due to streaming services as in digital rental. And, despite my previously skepticism and to my chagrin, I stand corrected. Not only is M3GAN very good, but I would go as far as to say, the best movie of 2023 thus far.

The plot of Megan is somewhat straightforward; after 8-year-old orphan Cady, is traumatized from experiencing a horrific car accident. She is taken into custody by her aunt Gemma, played by Get Out’s Allison Williams who specializes in robotic engineering for a Toy company. While, dealing with grief from her parents’ deaths, along with being neglected by her workaholic aunt Cady discovers a prototype robot called Bruce which leads to an idea to develop a life-size robot design as a caretaker and companion And of course, you can imagine what ensues in this sci-fi slash horror slash comedy.

I must admit that I had trepidations about this movie before going in because of its PG-13 rating which I assumed would be the kiss of death, but it's quite the opposite. Megan delivers and then some! aside from its dark humor there are moments of emotional weight as far as the relationship between Cady and M3GAN are concerned, there’s one scene Where Megan comforts Katie during a presentation held by the competing toy manufacturer “Funky” which sounds like a parody of Funko.

 Megan who was assigned as Cady's caretaker forms a strong bond with her assuming the role as this protective  sister. A narrative that complements the film's one hour and 34 minutes. Now, if you've seen as many horror films as I have obviously, you're going to predict certain outcomes depending on the scenario sure there are all-too familiar moments regarding Megan’s first kill, Cady being confronted by a school bully, and of course, the cryptic ending. However, Megan keeps it fresh thanks to the clever Co-writing of James Wan, and director Gerard Johnstone’s vison.

Another scene that stood out for me, is when Megan becomes more self-aware of her surrounding environment and becomes more knowledgeable by watching and listening to human behavior. it’s almost reminiscent of Ultron from The Avengers sequel while, not in stark comparison, there is some familiarity if not kinship between the two killer robots both seem to be fully functional when it comes to deadpan humor, with a modicum of narcissism. 

As for the violent content itself, while not as gory as the previous Chucky movies which most people will compare this film to, there are several death scenes that are left to one’s imagination sans gratuitous gore. The most extreme case would be Megan ripping some poor bastard’s ear off, but in spite of graphic content, the screenwriters’ are unabashed of its cartoony violent scenes involving the titular antagonist. 

During the first 25 minutes, the writing is pretty much on the wall, as the story was not really intended to be taken too seriously. So yeah, overall, it's a very satisfactory 2023 entry, and of course with most science fiction films it serves as a cautionary tale of automation being a potential threat to humankind as robot technology is somewhat getting closer to becoming a reality especially when automation has already affected society during the previous years. Overall Megan is a good time to be had its quirky it's very funny at times and the performances From the supporting cast especially the voice actress Kimberly Crossman makes this film worthy of praise.

Chalk this one as yet another winner for Blumhouse studios as this entry ranks high among but not too recent sci-fi horror films such as Invisible Man and Upgrade. As for the animatronic puppet itself, she kind of reminds me of one of Jerry Anderson's characters from the 60s series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. Could Megan be a distant relative  of Symphony Angel? You be the judge!

Photos courtesy of Universal Pictures. Captured by Slapshot