Low budget, but enjoyable Charles Band Full Moon production about a pregnant policewoman, Tracy Scoggins (I'd totally forgotten about her and remembered how I had a crush on her as Cat Grant on "Lois & Clark"), and a scrappy delivery boy, Bentley Mitchum (grandson of Robert Mitchum) are trapped in a haunted toy warehouse where, you guessed it, reside possessed murderous toys. This is one in a long string of Charles Band productions to feature small things terrorizing larger things (i.e. Puppet Master, Dollman, Gingerdead Man, Evil Bong, Shrunken Heads, etc.) and it's a formula that works surprisingly well. Despite the cheapness of the production (the film basically takes place entirely on one set), the creepy little toys doing terrible things is entertaining, Scoggins is attractive in the lead, and there's novelty value in the casting of Robert Mitchum's grandson in the type of bad boy role his grandfather was well known for. I really wish there had been more stop-motion animation in the film, though that would have cost more money, but what little stop-motion animation the film does have is excellent! "Demonic Toys" was an early script by David S. Goyer, who'd later go on to write some major Hollywood comic book adaptations including The Dark Knight films, the Blade series, and "Dark City." Although Goyer has his name on a number of quality films, his best films always had a strong director or were co-writen by other, so I've never been quite sure how much credit to give Goyer for his better films. For his films where he's received sole writing credit or were not helmed by strong directors, those films were often weaker (i.e. "Man of Steel" or Blade I and III) if not outright awful ("The Crow: City of Angels"). Much like his weaker bug budget films, this one suffers from a lack of character development, an over reliance on plot contrivances, and few original ideas. Still, producer Charles Band has reliably delivered entertaining low budget genre pictures since the late 1970s and has a track record that continues to hold strong to this day. I also won't fault the director too much, since it was directed by Peter Manoogian, who directed another one of my favorite Charles Band productions, the ridiculous, but enjoyable "Eliminators." Also worth noting is that the musical score by theunderrated composer Richard Band (brother of Charles) delivers another reliably good synthesizer heavy score.Band's pictures may not appeal to a wide audience and may not appeal even to all horror fans, but if you're a fan of Band and Full Moon Entertainment, this one is well worth watching, even if it's isn't exactly a classic on the level of "Trancers," "Re-Animator," or even "Subspecies."

I've been going a little "Full Moon" crazy lately, so I thought I might as well try and delve into this 1992 beaut! I loved this tons as a kid, really thought it was one of the coolest horror movies ever. I mean at the time it was like you just couldn't possibly go wrong with a title like that! And now? Well.. If such a thing is even possible I'm not blinded by my nostalgia, I see that it's a bit of a terrible movie. The pacing is rotten, some of the acting is wretched, the dull setting is boring, and the very worst of all the toys are lame as f**k! But nevertheless despite how lousy and stupid a large part of it is, I've still got a big soft spot for this and enjoy it a lot to this day. So to me those toys really are quite rubbish, they just don't begin to compare to the Puppet Master puppets. The jack-in-the-box isn't bad, I like his sinisterly-decorated self-winding box. And the teddy bear is okay before he grows into something that resembles a Power Rangers monster. The robot is just pathetic, and the incredibly- obnoxious Baby Oopsie-Daisy is just plain annoying and comes off as nothing but a vulgar Chucky rip-off without any of the personality or wit. It did make me laugh when she gets kicked in the head and says "bummer!" But for me the absolute worst actor in this has gotta be Bentley Mitchum as "Mark", he is god awful. His method seems to have been to look as sweaty and shriek as loudly as he could to show just how much he's freaking out and hope that everyone buys it as good acting! And he does the exact same routine in this other movie called "The Borrower" He's just a poorly-written unlikeable asshole. Why on earth would those poor people at the chicken takeout place employ such a bullying slacker? I also hate the mallrat chick who appears out of the lofty vents, the way she speaks her lines just makes me cringe. She doesn't serve a purpose beyond showing up and dying! It's by no means all bad though. I like Tracy Scoggins. She may have the worst last name in the history of the universe but she's good here, at least before she a blubbering helpless victim who can't seem to say anything except for "Oh god no!" I love all of the little back-and-fourths between her and the demon boy. I really like that kid, I think he's a very entertaining villain. There was something about the combination of that magnetic voice and that young actor that was somehow very effective. And whether you hate or love this movie you've gotta admit that he does have a lovely voice, it's carelessness itself! I find the whole evil scheme to possess "Officer Judith's" unborn baby and use the animated toys to sacrifice the folks trapped in the warehouse interesting, but it's just a bit of a shame it all couldn't have been done with a little more competency and pzazz! I get a kick out of the late Peter Schrum as the lovably crude "Charnetsky", he had a very novel philosophy about things.(I concur) It's too bad that he dies right away, as he was probably the most likable cast member. I also enjoy Michael Russo as a criminal bad guy type named "Lincoln" who gets more manically crazy and funnier as it goes on! Never knew a human head could be so easily knocked off the shoulders before(!) And I like the silly little touches like the Chicken-Mobile, big props to whoever put that thing together, and the old lady in the flashback who thinks it's a good idea to give a random group of kids on Halloween Night the gross newborn corpse of a devil baby! Also the theme tune by Richard Band gives things a little more magic than they probably deserved in this case. I like the ending where the fantastically stop-motion animated toy soldier who is like an angel toy and represents the spirit of Judith's unborn son, saves her and waves goodbye and vanishes, it's surprisingly sweet and poignant. Whether for good or ill it's a viewing experience that sticks with you, and if you're one for enjoying fun tacky horror from the early 90s-going-on late 80s, this'll be right up your street. There are better rampaging 'imp' movies out there, but to me at least this one has enough goodies to make it worthwhile, and somehow despite all its flaws it manages to retain a certain charm that suckers you in for the ride. Good old Demonic Toys...still a fun time!

For a bad movie, this really isn't so bad, especially if you take into consideration the standards of Charles Band's Full Moon Pictures during the direct-to-video horror wave of the early 1990s. Model and sci-fi TV actress Traci Scoggins is a police detective on the trail of illegal arms dealers as her partner/lover is gunned down in a showdown in a toy warehouse. Little does she know that an evil demon in the form of a child has lured her there so that she can give birth to the nasty spirit through her unborn offspring. Along for the ride is chicken delivery boy Bentley Mitchum (Robert Mitchum's grandson), an unsuspecting security guard and teenage runaway who fall victim to the animated toys that are possessed by the demonic forces.This combines elements from 'Child's Play' and 'Puppet Master', but is mostly played for unintentional or intentional laughs as 'Baby Oopsie Daisy (a hilarious cussing baby doll), a cursed jack-in-the-box (that suspiciously resembles the 'Killer Clowns From Outer Space'), a toy robot that fires deadly blue lights, a teddy bear that grows into a giant monstrosity, and a multitude of other perilous playthings hunt down the cast through the ventilation ducts and storage rooms all the while getting poor Traci ready for her birth of the anti-Christ or whatever. The cast is pretty competent here as they seem to be taking this nonsense seriously, and assistant director Peter Manoogian decides to take this one on his own quite imaginatively. This focuses on action throughout, so its not such a chore to sit through. One could do a lot worse for late-night entertainment.

A police bust goes awry, resulting in the death of a police officer. His partner (Tracy Scoggins) chases the killers to a warehouse full of toys, but she doesn't know that tonight the toys will awaken and be filled with diabolic spirits. Along with a fast food delivery driver and a bumbling security guard, can she defeat the toys and Satan or will the demon achieve his highest goal -- being born into a human host? Full Moon films aren't really known for being awesome, and this film is no exception. It's slow, focuses too little on the toys and returns to a dream sequence more times than is really necessary. Focusing on the toys more may not be a wise idea, though, because with one or two exceptions, John Buechler's creations are little more than well-crafted hand puppets. Two drunk kids with the proper equipment could have made this film, and probably have done better. (The only toy that was cool was Baby Oopsie Daisy.) The cast was alright, even though the acting was more or less worthless. The male police officer was played by an atrocious actor, so his untimely death was a welcome addition to the film. And the hairstyles of the early 1990s pretty much guaranteed that none of the cast involved was attractive to look at. Sure, Miss July (Kristine Rose) was respectably hot, but I wasn't convinced. And I thought the homeless girl (Ellen Dunning) had a very Mandy Mooresque voice and face, which kept my heart beating rapidly. But still not good enough.I'd like to say it's a good film by Full Moon standards and by the fact that this was the director's first picture. But that's no excuse and really not true. Full Moon pumps out sludge better than this all the time... although after seeing "Gingerdead Man", I can assure you they also make much worse.There's no good reason to rent or buy this film. If you're trying to bring back memories of your childhood, you're probably better off just sticking to the memories. This film will crush them and leave you crying and soulless. Just because "Puppet Master" is possibly a winner (see separate review) and "Child's Play" is a winner, combining the two doesn't ensure a winner if it's handled by no-talent hacks.