''Ragdoll'' is a 1999 American
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...
directed by
Ted Nicolaou. The film was later edited into a thirty-minute short entitled ''Voodoo Doll'' for the horror anthology ''
Devil Dolls''.
Plot
A talented teenage
rapper named Kwame uses his Grandmother's ancient
voodoo
Voodoo may refer to:
Religions
* African or West African Vodun, practiced by Gbe-speaking ethnic groups
* African diaspora religions, a list of related religions sometimes called Vodou/Voodoo
** Candomblé Jejé, also known as Brazilian Vodu ...
(magic of the killing kind) to help him in his revenge against the sadistic crime boss trying to extort his group, after he and his two brothers put her in the hospital. He summons the dark spirit known as the Shadow Man, to kill the criminal and his brothers. When the Shadow Man asks Kwame what he will pay, Kwame says that he will promise him any thing, except his Grandmother, or the deal is off.
The Shadow Man uses magic to give life to an old ragdoll, and sends it to kill. Kwame soon learns that with each death of his enemies, the ragdoll then kills someone he cares about. When his girlfriend, Tisha, is targeted, his Grandmother uses her magic to secretly trade places with Tisha. When the ragdoll comes and kills her, it breaks the deal with the Shadow Man, as Kwame said his Grandmother could not be harmed. Though Tisha is safe , Kwame can only mourn for his dead friends and Grandmother.
Cast
*
Russell Richardson as Kwame
*
William L. Johnson as Jean
*
Jennifer Echols as Woman Detective
* Derrick Jones as Man
*
Rick Michaels as Second Detective
*
Freda Payne as Gran
* Jay Williams as Emcee
* Rejjie Jones as Third Detective
*
Jennia Fredrique as Teesha
* Tarnell Poindexter as Little Mikey
*
William Stanford Davis as Pere
* Danny Wooten as Gem
* Troy Medley as Louis
* Frederic Tucker as Shadow Man
* Lamar Haywood as Agent
* Jemal McNeil as Bartender
* Renee O'Neil as Sylvie
Production
The film was originally announced in 1992, but it did not begin pre-production until 1999.
Charles Band stated that rumors that Paramount had shut down production of the film were untrue; he chose not to shoot the film, as he felt that it needed more time to develop.
Release
Big City Records, a music label owned by Full Moon, released an associated soundtrack, ''Ragdoll: Music Inspired By The Motion Picture''. This was the label's first release.
Reception
''
Dread Central
Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers horror films, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Best Website f ...
'' thought highly of the edited version of the film for ''Devil Dolls'', writing "here’s a halfway decent story here and some enjoyably hammy acting bolstering it".
References
External links
*
{{Full Moon Features
1999 films
Puppet films
1999 direct-to-video films
Films about sentient toys
Direct-to-video horror films
Films directed by Ted Nicolaou
Sentient toys in fiction
1990s English-language films