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The first time Child’s Play was released was on French Milan in 1989, so it was a collector’s item for quite awhile. While the Milan release had fourteen tracks that ran at 46:29, the new release has the same number of tracks but boasts an extra 18:29 of music to murder by. This new release by La La Land Records is a whole other level of packaging and music. The Milan release has a meager four sided CD insert, while the new release is produced by Ford Thaxton, it’s re-mastered, expanded from the MGM vault elements, and has this fantastic artistic booklet created by Mark Banning, including a classic color picture of Chucky on the CD itself, and some amazing liner notes by Brian Satterwhite detailing the cues. Satterwhite’s notes include new commentary from Renzetti. So for us to discuss the music of each cue is a waste, just buy the CD, put it on your player, read the booklet, and let Chucky rip your heart out. The excellent booklet details all of the music for a film that was made twenty one years ago. This release is directed at the collector, after the 1200 limited CD’s are sold, that’s it. I seriously doubt if anyone will re-release this beautifully packaged soundtrack or can even add anything more to it in the future.
Since Child’s Play was made in 1988, the popularity of Chucky has spawned four other films including Child’s Play 2: Chucky’s Back in 1990 (Graeme Revell), Child’s Play 3: Look Who’s Stalking in 1991 (John D’Andrea/Cory Lerois), Child’s Play 4: Bride of Chucky in 1998 (Graeme Revell), and Child’s Play 5: Seed of Chucky in 2004 (Pino Donaggio). Each film becomes stranger and more ridiculous as the story evolves, but many viewers connect with how hysterical Chucky has become, especially with his new bride who’s played by Jennifer Tilly.
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It all starts with the story of Charles Lee Ray and his spiritual satanic transference into a toy doll during a police shoot out, a “Good Guys” doll, which every child wants. Actor Brad Douriff is terrific as Charles Lee Ray/Chucky and the director Tom Holland does a top rate job making us believe that Chucky is alive and well, an evil spirit trying to find another human being to transfer back into. Tom Holland has directed his share of horror films including the Showtime series Masters of Horror, The Langoliers and Thinner (both written by Stephen King), the HBO series Tales from the Crypt, and the cult classic Fright Night, actually his first film in 1985, as well as being the writer on Psycho II. The only two collaborations between Holland and Renzetti were in Child’s Play and then one year later for Tales from the Crypt (Lover Come Hack to Me).It all starts with the story of Charles Lee Ray and his spiritual satanic transference into a toy doll during a police shoot out, a “Good Guys” doll, which every child wants. Actor Brad Douriff is terrific as Charles Lee Ray/Chucky and the director Tom Holland does a top rate job making us believe that Chucky is alive and well, an evil spirit trying to find another human being to transfer back into. Tom Holland has directed his share of horror films including the Showtime series Masters of Horror, The Langoliers and Thinner (both written by Stephen King), the HBO series Tales from the Crypt, and the cult classic Fright Night, actually his first film in 1985, as well as being the writer on Psycho II. The only two collaborations between Holland and Renzetti were in Child’s Play and then one year later for Tales from the Crypt (Lover Come Hack to Me).
Joe Renzetti was born on January 4, 1941 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He first became interested in music at age six after he heard a guitarist at a wedding. Joe began his career in the early 60s as the in-house guitarist at Cameo Records in Philadelphia, and then he moved to New York and worked as an arranger for Tiny Tim, Neil Diamond, Tony Orlando, Jerry Butler, Wayne Newton, and Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. Later Renzetti ended up in Hollywood to try his luck as a film composer. With his first film, The Buddy Holly Story, he landed the job of teaching the actors portraying Holly and his band how to sing and play their instruments live, which was a first for a movie. Joe won an Academy Award for Best Adaptation Score for his outstanding contributions to The Buddy Holly Story (1978). Besides working in television he scored Dead and Buried (1981), Vice Squad (1982), Poltergeist III (1988), Child’s Play (1988), Tales from the Crypt (1989), Basketcase 2 (1990) and Basketcase 3: The Progeny (1992), and Frankenhooker (1990).
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Outside of his film work Joe composes music for orchestras, chamber groups, and solo artists. In his spare time Renzetti composes his own music in a state-of-the-art recording studio he created in an 18th century log cabin that he owns in Upper Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Joe’s thrilling atmospheric score for Child’s Play helped launch the Chucky franchise, the unstoppable killer doll, into horror icon history.
These days horror films up the ante by using myriads of electronics in their scores, but it’s scores like this that show how a composer uses orchestral elements combined with synthesis to underscore a film with avant-garde ideas and techniques. Quite often it’s a feeling of waiting or intricate musical nuances that leave us in a “What’s about to happen?” state. Child’s Play gets a high rating because of what the music does for the film, without it Chucky is a lifeless boring puppet with some violent mechanical moves, with music, it’s mysteriously emotional, a horrifying scream fest with an insane doll gone mad on a bloodletting murderous rampage. The music is a terrifying orchestral ambient mind manipulator, keeping you on the edge of your seat wondering when Chucky will strike next. Sometimes the percussion emphasizes action, certain subtleties, and even suspense, but a lot of the composition highlights twisted musical passages for a murder in waiting, slow droning orchestration and avant-garde ambiences that set the stage for hair raising events. This is subtly sonic manic manipulation, the background for a child’s bad dream. It’s this instrumental intricacy that works within Holland’s vision, very atonal at times, quirky, and maniacal. So sit back and absorb the madness, after you hear The Chucky Song you’ll be laughing hysterically!
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