Horror’s newest icon serves chuckles, chills & predictable kills.

In a world of chaos and turmoil, it’s comforting to know that one universal truth endures – all dolls are pure, unadulterated evil.

Inanimate or animatronic, behind those glassy, emotionless eyes lies the potential for unspeakable malevolence. And it’s for this precise reason that dolls have been such potent horror fuel for decades.

From Child’s Play to Dead Silence via Annabelle, Poltergeist, and too many low-rent efforts to list; horror has consistently found ways to turn this deceptively innocent childhood toy into one of the genre’s most effective scaring tools.

It’s a device that horror filmmakers have returned to repeatedly and one that M3GAN ruthlessly (and joyously) exploits.

When brilliant roboticist Gemma (Allison Williams) suddenly becomes the caretaker of her orphaned 8-year-old niece, Cady (Violet McGraw), she swiftly finds she’s wholly unprepared to be a parent. Under intense pressure at work, Gemma decides to pair her M3GAN prototype - a lifelike AI doll programmed to be a child’s greatest companion and a parent’s greatest ally - with Cady to resolve both problems, a decision that will have unimaginable consequences.

Before we go any further, it must be said that M3GAN is nowhere near as terrifying as its setup suggests. From our very first look at the titular AI antagonist, M3GAN felt destined to be a horror icon, and while there’s little doubting that she’s well on her way to becoming the latter, the horror part is perhaps a little more tangential.

With a decidedly satirical bent that mines the inherent comedy of its wacky setup for all it’s worth, M3GAN’s ability to fully capitalise on its horror potential is undermined somewhat by its knowing silliness, however, that doesn’t mean it’s not one hell of a ride.

So, yes, for those who like their horrors bathed in blood, M3GAN isn’t quite the slash-heavy gore-fest it initially suggests (or that some had hoped), however, that in no way holds it back from being a thoroughly enjoyable watch. With long periods of build-up leading to brutal, but not especially graphic, violence, the film does often feel a little on the safe side, however, when it gets going, it positively slays.

With a nudge and a wink, M3GAN knows precisely what it is and exactly the service it‘s here to provide. While the story is certainly a chilling one, especially considering our increasingly uncomfortable reliance on artificial intelligence, the rogue killer android trope is hardly a new one, however, the film certainly knows this, avoiding all temptation to take itself seriously.

The result, as M3GAN begins to malfunction and take her Cady protection duties a tad too far, is a gloriously camp affair that comes pre-programmed for a good time. Written with wry wit and a huge dollop of jagged satire, M3GAN’s script is smart and sharp, if not entirely original.

Quite frankly, you’ll be able to tell where everything is going almost immediately. While the writing is sharp and witty with its characters and its world-building, M3GAN’s plotting is about as basic as it comes.

With a sprinkle of Child’s Play, a heavy dose of A.I. Artificial Intelligence, and more than a hint of Black Mirror, M3GAN feels very much like a cut and paste job at times, and certainly won’t be winning any prizes for originality, yet, while its predictability holds it back from reaching its true potential, it certainly won’t hinder your enjoyment.

The film’s overall message about the dangers of unchecked artificial intelligence is both a dark and highly pertinent one that helps add an edge to its horror, yet this is nicely balanced by a surprisingly amiable light-heartedness. In an attempt to avoid wallowing in overearnestness, M3GAN’s distinctly blithe tone and tongue-in-cheek approach give it a big advantage over the more po-faced tech-minded horrors out there.

It also helps when you have an absolute queen as your star. Make no mistake, from the very second we witnessed M3GAN dancing down a hallway while on a murderous rampage in the trailer, there was little doubt that we had a full-blown horror icon on our hands. With an unnerving “uncanny valley” look and messy, zero-shits-given attitude, M3GAN is an absolute force and carries much of the film on her shoulders, elevating what is a pretty basic premise to a whole new level.

As predictable, derivative, and relatively bloodless as it is, there’s just something about M3GAN that’s hard not to love, as it serves up chuckles, chills, and a tonne of messy, knowingly silly fun. Led by horror’s newest queen, she may be a bit basic, but boy does M3GAN slay.