janetgoodman Here's a short and not-so-sweet review.A few things about me: a horror fan that was a teen in the 80s, I'm a real buff of scary, solid films. For instance, John Carpenter's The Thing, Jacob's Ladder, and Alien/Aliens. And - I can like camp for its own merits... as long as it's well done.There's always been a number of supposed "classics" that I planned to see... someday. (Haven't seen Leprachaun yet, believe it or not.)Today was the day I finally saw Puppetmaster. At least the half of it I could get through before I gave up. Terrible pacing, terrible script, boring and bland. And that's coming from someone who's terrified of evil dolls, and had nightmares because of Magic, Trilogy of Terror and Poltergeist.Sorry, but this one was a major waste of time and a yawn-fest.

Foreverisacastironmess I loved this to death as a kid and I've still got a big soft spot for it nowadays. I still remember how the VHS cover art gave me major chills just to look at! It was the coolest most scariest thing, right there on the shelf of "Rent-A-Tape", the puppets in their crate just dripping with menace and the promise of grisly puppet death, and for me this was always one horror movie that actually lived up to its awesome box art. The tiny terrors are definitely an iconic and lovably horrid bunch. Blade is the slick little death assassin and is probably everyone's favourite, the teeny-headed bald guy with the strangling human-sized hands is the muscle, Leech Woman is the doll-sized deadly temptress, good lord, how could I have never clicked-on as a kid as to what the symbolism of her nauseating trick actually means!? I find the Jester interesting. He may not kill anyone, but he's the only one that can really display emotions. While it's very artistic and beautiful to watch, I fail to see how his expression changing is physically possible, unless of course it's a part of the magic process that gave him life in the first place.. And the Driller is the one I find the spookiest because what he does is downright mortifying and messed-up! And while they may be creepy as all hell, I like the rule that the puppets aren't actually evil, they just do evil things if commanded to do so by the Puppet Master... I dearly love the excellent music which is very memorable and really does add a ton of depth to this movie all by itself and gives it a completely unique feel. Eerie atmosphere and tone is where it really does come out on top, and a lot of the unnerving quality of it is the classic kind of things.. What's hiding under the bed, what's scuttling around in the shadows that you only just miss as it rushes by.. It builds up the suspense and tension really well. But that said the plot is irritatingly hazy, convoluted and barely makes sense, and it gets boring and surreal at points. The focus is mainly on the people and not so much the puppets, and it does feel more like a mystery than a horror. Yet for me, overall it still works. It's hard to follow what's going on for a lot of it, especially if you don't pay attention during the opening sequence. So there was the real villain, the Puppet Master, who when he was alive was a greedy rapist asshole who wanted to live forever so he married some girl just for the money and worked together with a group of psychics of various kinds to help him find the hidden lore of the late Andrei Toulon and he got what he wanted, and then he lures the psychics to the foreboding Bodega Bay Inn by their dreams to have his new puppet servants slaughter them one by one so that no one will ever know his secret. It's just very sloppy and confused storytelling, I think they should have dropped the psychic nonsense as a flick about killer puppets is bound to be pretty weird however you go about it. However, it's really gotta be the highlight of the whole thing and is mighty gratifying when the grimacing villain eventually ticks off the puppets when he hurts one of their own by contemptuously throwing it across the room - which then for him spells disaster, as the puppets turn on the master! Oh you know he was in for it after harming poor Jester, never mind that four people are already dead because of the guy! The madness reaches such a magnificent crescendo in that scene, I love it, it's so gruesome! And then there's more vague oddness at the ending which sees the dull as dishwater woman staying at the inn as its new owner, and judging by her dog she's figured out a few tricks. They never say what happened to the puppets, which is annoying, and then it ends on a weak note, but I still find it a very worthwhile movie. Most of the actors like the Beethoven- looking fella with the huge head are just boring, the only one I liked was the sassy fortune teller who foresees her own death, she was the only one to me that seemed to be trying to have a little fun with it. I think the best thing about it is the special effects, the puppets, both model and stop-motion animated look really good and hold up surprisingly well, I hadn't seen this for several years until recently and I think they still look impressive, you can feel it when they're attacking somebody. I love how much individual detail and scariness is put into each one. I do hope they never remake it, because there'd only be like ten thousand CGI puppets, they'd all be ten feet tall, and Marvel superheroes would appear to defeat them. So while it may not be essential viewing to everyone, I consider this movie and its sequel to be real distinctive gems of the horror genre and they're both really close to my heart! There's a certain charm there that always makes me love it, flaws and all. It isn't trying to be anything else than what it is, which as far as I'm concerned is pure, unadulteratedly entertaining schlocky horror magic. So let's hear it! Three groans for Puppet Master!!!

lois-lane33 I like some horror films so I thought I'd give this one a spin. I've seen just about everything else I suppose. Its a strange little movie. Not a great deal to it. I'm not sure if its as successful a movie as they say it is-despite that it had several sequels-so did Hellraiser and most of those sequels were regarded as meaningless flotsam and jetsam. The plot line of this movie doesn't delve into how an old guy who loves making marionettes is able to bring them to life. There is something to explore-since such a skill isn't the most average of talents. That the same guy opts to shoot himself in the head rather than face two guys who are apparently Nazis-in California in 1939- is another inexplicable thing. He could have shot at them. He chose not to. Strange. Blah blah blah and the ending is a twist that also doesn't make a great deal of sense either.

skybrick736 Full Moon's classic movie, most likely their masterpiece, no pun intended is Puppet Master. The first shot of Blade running throughout the hotel to his creator Tulon was a great hook to the opening credits. The credits have the magnificent Puppet Master theme song that is one of my favorites in the horror genre. The music really sets the atmosphere for this type of fun corny movie but it still produces a creepy feel. What really makes the movie though is the characters being both the humans and the puppets themselves that have their own identity and uniqueness. Irene Miracle who plays Dana Hadley is still a Hollywood crush of mine and she played a fabulous eccentric role in the film. It's hard to nitpick on Puppet Master but if I have to say if there is a letdown it's probably the ending twist which could have had a bit more to it. I recommend Puppet Master to any horror fan around it's a great movie to the horror genre.