Since 1989, Charles Band has been delivering his tiny terrors in the form of his Puppet Master films (among others). There are currently fourteen films, including the 2018 reboot Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich and the 2020 spinoff Blade: The Iron Cross. New to Blu-ray is the 2022 spinoff film Puppet Master: Doktor Death.
This particular character was first introduced in 1999’s Retro Puppet Master. That’s seriously a mouthful to spit out, but with thirty-four years of history, there’s a lot to power through. I’m no hardcore fan of the series, but I have watched most of them. It’s been many years since I’ve revisited the sequels (except for part 3, which you can read about here), so my memory is a bit cloudy. I was curious to see what the series would look like now with Band and company continuing to churn them out the way he used to. It was a pleasant surprise to see Doktor Death and a welcome return to their roots.
Shady Oaks is a senior living facility with an interesting group of retired folks. April (Jenny Boswell) has just moved to town and has just been hired to look after them. It’s her first day on the job, and there’s already been a death. Her first assignment is to team up with one of the other nurses and go through the deceased’s things. What they find is what they believe to be a harmless puppet is, in actuality, Doktor Death, one of Toulon’s original death dealers. As the body count rises, no one knows who is behind the killings, giving the advantage to the pint-sized executioner. Will they discover the truth before it’s too late, or will Death come for them all?
What I enjoyed most about this film is the fact there was a real effort to do a throwback film, which feels like those first few films did. It successfully achieves this with ease though its only real setback is a lack of budget. The effects are done well, nothing extravagant or gory, but there’s enough blood to please fans.
The cast is good, delivering what they need to when needed, and the story services what it needs to. I wouldn’t call this a problem, but Doktor Death runs a whopping fifty-nine minutes. You heard right; it’s less than an hour. It certainly works in the sense that the movie is never boring, and before you know it, you’ve reached the cliffhanger ending. With such a short runtime, you never really get to know the cast. There’s enough development to interest you, just not enough to care who lives or dies.
RELATED: ‘Puppet Master III: Toulon’s Revenge’ (1991) Blu-ray Review: A Full Moon Cult Classic
Aside from that, it’s a worthy entry in the series, and should they do a sequel to this, I’d be happy to check it out. If you’ve never seen Retro Puppet Master, the film still gives you just enough background (in the form of flashbacks taken from that film) to keep the audience in the know. There’s also a great cameo from legendary scream queen Melissa Moore you won’t want to miss.
The Blu-ray is exactly what you’d expect from Full Moon, and director Dave Parker (The Dead Hate the Living) knows how to please the fans. The disc is pretty light on the features. It includes the Videozone for Retro Puppet Master and a collection of Full Moon trailers. If you’re not a fan of the product Full Moon has been giving us for nearly four decades, don’t waste your time. If you are or at least a fan of campy horror films, you will undoubtedly have a blast with Puppet Master: Doktor Death.
