I had such a fantastic time at the theater watching this film. Even better was experiencing it with a packed audience. “M3GAN” follows Gemma, a talented roboticist working for a high-tech toy company, Funki. When Gemma finds herself unexpectedly caring for her 8-year-old niece, she gifts her with a prototype M3GAN, an artificial intelligence doll capable of listening, watching, and learning while fulfilling the roles of friend, teacher, playmate, and protector. As Gemma's boss, David sees the potential for M3GAN's success, he attempts to get M3GAN fast-tracked into production. As M3GAN's relationship with Cady grows and M3GAN's intelligence continues to evolve, some unintended consequences arise.

Most of what works with “M3GAN” are her subtle mannerisms that merely suggest to the audience that horrors are soon to come. The audience was eating up every sideways glance and foreboding quip before M3GAN spilled even a solitary drop of blood. Unfortunately, there's not a ton of blood that's actually spilled. For that reason, “M3GAN” is reliant more on its humorous tone and fun character design than on actual carnage and death. The filmmakers made a calculated decision to maintain a PG-13 rating in the hopes of making the film more widely accessible. But it definitely comes at a cost for the blood-loving horror fans out there. Still, “M3GAN” is a lot of fun, and I'm crossing my fingers that Universal decides to bring an unrated or R-rated cut to audiences for its at-home release.

“M3GAN” is pleasantly surprising for a January horror release. Historically, studios have used the month of January as a dumping ground for films they have lost confidence in, especially in the horror genre. “M3GAN” proved to be a delicious theatrical experience with some great laughs and some precious needle drops. I highly recommend seeing it in a packed theater. Prepare to be inundated with “M3GAN” memes in the coming weeks, though.

— 3.5 / 5 ⭐