By Robert Scucci | Published
There’s no doubt that any horror fan is familiar with (or tired of) the “oh my god, my toy has come to life and is trying to kill me” trope. I, for one, felt like this once-inanimate antagonist premise had been put to death until I watched Karl Holt’s 2019 film, Benny loves you. Playing like a mix between Shaun of the Dead And Child’s play, Benny loves you is curious, cuddly, excessively violent and, what’s more, has a wicked sense of humor that will have Chucky himself supporting the titular toy, Benny, from the sidelines.
An inexplicable resuscitation
After a brutal opening sequence involving a little girl named Ashley (Bella Munday) being executed by her old teddy bear, it is implied that Benny is not the only sentient, sadistic toy in existence. But we quickly forget about Ashley – who was annoying on purpose so as not to miss her – when the story shifts to our hero, Jack (played by writer/director/producer Karl Holt).
Jack is a 35 year old in every sense of the stereotype you can think of Benny loves you. Living with his parents, sleeping in his childhood bedroom with his stuffed animal Benny by his side, and working as an underperforming toy designer, Jack has little to offer other than his parents’ unconditional love, who in my mind are at least somewhat responsible for their adult child’s current state of arrested development. After a bizarre birthday cake accident, both of Jack’s parents die, meaning the mortgage is no longer paid and he will have to sell the house.
It’s Benny time!
Meanwhile, Jack is fired by his boss, Ron (James Parsons) for not coming up with lucrative toy ideas, but is then rehired on probation until he can prove himself a worthy designer with help from Dawn (Clair Cartwright). , a technical consultant working for a toy company. Realizing he must grow up or shut up, Jack strips his soon-to-be-sold house of all his childhood possessions, including Benny. Jack quickly learns that he has made the grave mistake that defines the rest of Benny loves you in motion when his beloved childhood toy comes to life with murderous intent.
One by one, anyone who enters Jack’s house is brutally murdered as he stops by to visit. Benny loves you. Therefore, cleaning up after Benny and escaping the less than competent police on more than one occasion inspires Jack to design a toy based on Benny’s image and his new personality, which is beneficial to his career. As Jack grows closer to Dawn, his emotions are taken hostage by Benny, who is willing to kill anyone Jack pays attention to other than himself.
It’s not as cliché as it seems
I know you probably think that Benny loves you is just another watered down and poorly executed version of the Child’s Play franchise, similar to The Gingerdead Man Or Ooga Boga. Shamelessly borrowing several pages from the sentient murder doll playbook, Benny loves you holds up because it plays out more like a comedy of errors than anything else. Jack is certainly a talented designer, but his clumsiness is exacerbated by the fact that he must cover up a grisly murder every time anyone approaches him, and often while his guests are minding their own business in the next room.
In fact, most comedies Benny loves you involves Jack randomly wiping up large amounts of blood while peeking into the other room to make sure everything is okay.
And Benny, as adorable as he may seem at first, is easily one of the most brutal serial killers I’ve seen in the subgenre. Using any object found around the house that he can get his hands on, Benny impales himself, cuts and, on one occasion, uses a vacuum cleaner to suck out his victims’ organs, all the while laughing inwardly and mouthing his catchphrase signature: “Benny loves you!”
Don’t reinvent the wheel
At the end of the day, Benny loves you is yet another entry in the killer doll subgenre. However, there’s nothing wrong with using a spinoff plot as long as it’s done well, which is why I prefer antagonists like Benny to the Annabelle doll found in the Conjuring universe. Benny loves you takes a tired trope and uses its own self-awareness to drive its humor home. If you look closely enough, you might even see some subtle attacks on Stephen King’s “The Monkey” in a few scenes.
While some of the violence may make you cringe, you’ll find yourself laughing at the most inappropriate moments, as the stop-motion animation is so deliberately over-the-top that you can’t help but fall in love with Benny.
If you want to stay on Benny’s good side by showing him your unwavering affection, you can stream Benny loves you for free on Tubi.
