The Doll Master (2023 film)

The Doll Master (Кукольник, lit. "Puppeteer") is a 2023 Russian teen horror thriller film directed by Sergey Kuznetsov and Roman Amsler. Targeted at a teenage audience (rated 12+), the story follows a group of kids in a late-1990s Russian village who confront a supernatural entity known as the "Doll Master", which turns children into living puppets.^[2] The film was the first feature project launched by the reorganized Gorky Film Studio in 2021.^[2] It was released theatrically on 23 March 2023. Despite modest box office results of about 12.5 million rubles,^[1] it ranked eighth among the most popular Russian films of 2023 on the portal Kino-Teatr.ru.^[3]

In 1997, thirteen-year-old Sonya moves with her mom and younger sister Anya from the city to a small village deep in the forest. The family is forced to relocate for Anya’s health: she has asthma, and the clean country air is supposed to help her recover. Sonya struggles with the changes. She dislikes village life, misses her old friends, and longs for the city’s entertainment.

At first, the local teens are unfriendly toward the newcomer. A group of bullies, led by a boy named Artyom, throw Sonya’s skateboard into the yard of an abandoned house on the edge of the village on her very first day. The old mansion is said to be cursed: according to legend, it is haunted by a ghost known as The Doll Master, who lures children inside and turns them into his puppets.

Determined to get her skateboard back and prove to the locals that there’s nothing supernatural there, Sonya sneaks into the abandoned house. Her younger sister secretly follows her. After this incident, the quiet and reserved Anya begins to change — she grows more distant and frightening by the day. Sonya suspects the transformation is linked to the legend of the Doll Master. Slowly, she befriends some of the local kids and convinces them to help her uncover the truth about the house. Together, they learn that several children had gone missing in the village years earlier — and the Doll Master may have been involved.

When Anya suddenly disappears, Sonya and her new friends set out to find her. Gathering their courage, the group breaks into the mansion again, this time all together. In the basement, they discover old dolls with eerie mirrored eyes — and among them, the entranced Anya and other captive children. The Doll Master, a sinister puppet-maker, turns out to be real: a supernatural manipulator dwelling in the house. He tries to seize control of Sonya’s friends, transforming them into living marionettes. But Sonya, overcoming her fear, confronts him to save her sister. United, the kids manage to break the spirit’s spell: the children are freed from his control, and the Doll Master loses his power and vanishes. Anya returns to her normal self.

Afterward, Sonya and her new friends agree to watch out for one another — from now on, they’ll protect each other and make sure no more children disappear from their village. Having defeated the Doll Master, the kids discover true friendship and a newfound confidence. In the final moments, it’s implied that evil might one day return — but now, the children have a close-knit team ready to fight back against any darkness.

• Polina Ryashko as Sonya, a 13-year-old schoolgirl
• Vitaliya Korniyenko (credited as Vita Kornienko) as Anya, Sonya's younger sister
• Mariya Mironova as a physician, Sonya and Anya's mother
• Nikita Elikarov as the Doll Master
• Aleksandr Novikov as Pasha
• Artyom Bashenin as Tyoma
• Saveliy Albutov as Malysh
• Fyodor Fedoseyev as Bobr
• Maksim Titov as Yura
• Demid Avdonin as Young Yura
• Elmir Ibragimov as Doll

Development of the project began in 2020–21 as part of Gorky Film Studio’s renewed focus on children’s and teen cinema. Producer Lika Blank described it as a “true teenage spook-story” made without gore, accessible to young audiences.^[2] Roman Amsler’s script was his directorial debut; he noted that the Doll Master symbolizes hidden dangers of gadgets and the internet.^[2] The film was shot in Tver Oblast and Moscow in 2021, using a combination of practical puppets, prosthetics, and CGI.^[2]

Theatrical release in Russia took place on 23 March 2023 via AVK-PRO.^[1] It grossed ₽4.8 million on opening weekend and ₽12.5 million overall.^[1] The digital premiere followed on 22 April 2023 on Kion, later appearing on Okko and Ivi.^[2]

Critics gave mixed reviews, averaging around 6.5–7/10.^[4] GameMag praised it as a family-friendly horror “made according to Hollywood standards.”^[5] Ivi.ru’s review criticized Anya’s “possessed child” portrayal as unconvincing.^[6] The horror magazine Darker described it as “average overall, with every strong idea offset by flaws.”^[7]

• Official page at Gorky Film Studio (in Russian)
• The Doll Master at IMDb