The saying ‘the third time’s a charm’ does not always apply… specifically in the land of Horror. Some may say this about Horror films in many series; this includes less than positively acclaimed third chapters like 1983’s Jaws 3-D, 2009’s Wrong Turn 3: Left for Dead, and 2017’s Jeepers Creepers 3. Hoping not to fall victim to the third film curse, coming to theaters on October 11, 2024, is Terrifier 3 through Cineverse.
Directed once again by Damian Leone, Terrifier 3 is about to blow up the minds of its viewers. As a fan of the first two films of this now-trilogy, plus 2013’s All Hallows’ Eve, this new entry sets itself apart for quite a few reasons. To start, this one is set right around Christmas time. Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton) is back to doing some of the most brutal tricks imaginable… but in a Santa suit. The humor of Art’s antics worked well in both 2016’s Terrifier and 2022’s Terrifer 2, plus Part 2 had the younger girl clown which made an impact by introducing a new evil character and a new plot line. Since Terrifier is primarily a Slasher type of Horror film, it was refreshing to see so much more of a plot in Terrifier 2. One interesting aspect there was that reality and dream state were almost one and the same. Even if it got a bit muddled, it was always up for interpretation in an artistic way.
So, considering all of this, what keeps the focus for Terrifier 3 viewers? Well, it is certainly the most disturbing and disgusting of them all. Shock value mixed with light-hearted humor was a running theme before, but in this particular film, it does make some sense to learn the film has been banned in France for those under eighteen. To some fans, Terrifier 3 could be viewed as over the top, and thus, perceived as tasteless brutality. Another opinion may be that the fans just eat up the characters of Art the Clown and his mother-figure sidekick on their murder spree. In a sense, the plot picks up where it left off in Terrifier 2, and Terrifier 3 certainly is not a boring film.
So, the question that comes to mind after Terrifier 3 concludes is – where can they go from here? In terms of Slasher-styled Horror such as the Scream series, Terrifier can’t keep doing the same things over and over again… because it does get old. Should it continue, it would be wise for this franchise to completely reinvent the characters and storyline, except for Art the Clown of course.
Regardless of everything, Terrifier 3 does have some entertaining moments of humor and gore that stand out, but naturally, this is not one for PC viewers to watch or take their children to see. As in the past, the clown character in the Terrifer world is outside the box from most of the other Clown-themed Horror. Films like 2017’s It have a fun plot, but Pennywise is not as scary as Art the Clown can be.
You could say it is the difference between Gore Grind and Brutal Death Metal when it comes to defining the differences between Terrifier 3 vs. Terrifier 2. Both have a different impact, these sub-genres are not for everyone. With a slew of good Horror-themed films taking over theaters this October season, including the long-anticipated Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Terrifier 3 holds its own for a raunchy, brutal Slash attack. For those who love Halloween, and are not so much into the spirit of Christmas, this may be as joyous as a plate of milk and cookies to you. All matters considered, Cryptic Rock gives Terrifer 3, 3.5 out of 5 stars.
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