I must confess that I haven’t seen the first two films in the Terrifier series. But I was drawn to check out the third film in the slasher franchise out of curiosity due to news reports from the US about people fainting, vomiting and fleeing from the cinema due to the intense level of graphic blood, violence and brutal slayings. And there’s certainly plenty of that. Terrifier 3 is not for the squeamish or those with delicate constitutions. And its main character Art the Clown has become one of those iconic seemingly indestructible villains that populate contemporary slasher films. He’s in the vein of characters like Freddy Kreuger or Jason Voorhees or Michael Myers, although far more sadistic, and inventive in his methods.
The film is set five years after the events of Terrifier 2. Sienna Shaw (Lauren La Vera) is still traumatised after having survived her encounter with Art the killer clown (David Howard Thornton). She’s released from the facility where she’s been receiving treatment to help her recover. Sienna plans to spend Christmas with her aunt and uncle (Margaret Anne Florence and Bryce Johnson) and their young daughter Gabie (Antonella Rose). But Sienna still experiences nightmares and hallucinations.
She also struggles to reconnect with her younger brother Jonathan (Elliott Fullam), who is in college and is trying to move on with his life. Suspecting Art is still alive, Sienna visits Jonathan to warn him. She meets his roommate Cole (Mason Mecartea) and Cole’s girlfriend Mia (Alexa Blair Robertson), who hosts a true crime podcast specialising in serial killers. Mia tries to pressure Sienna into becoming a guest on her program, but she rejects the offer.
Meanwhile Art – who was decapitated in the previous film – has returned to life. He’s accompanied by the possessed Victoria (Samantha Scaffidi). They encountered each other in an abandoned asylum, where they’ve spent the past couple of years resting. The asylum is earmarked for demolition. When the demolition experts arrive, they awaken Art and Victoria, who set out on a killing spree. The pair work their way towards Miles County where Sienna lives, brutally killing people along the way. Art dresses as Santa Claus after meeting with an impersonator in a bar. He uses some inventive and nasty methods to kill his victims, including wielding a chainsaw to cut up Cole and Mia who are having sex in a shower. He also uses an axe to chop off limbs and decapitate victims. He even uses liquid nitrogen to freeze a couple of victims and then uses a hammer to break their bodies.
Writer/director Damien Leone is familiar with the tone of the series having worked on the previous two instalments. He delivers plenty of gore here, with lots of severed limbs, spilled intestines and buckets of blood. And Leone uses practical effects where possible, which amplifies the gory scenes. Yes, the film truly earns its R rating. Some elements of the film though don’t really make a lot of sense. But with the screen liberally splashed in blood, the audience doesn’t really get much time to think about these problems until the final credits have rolled.
Leone works closely with regular cinematographer George Steuber to give the material the look and texture of vintage 80s horror films. Leone has also cast many familiar horror veterans in small roles. They include make-up and special effects artist Tom Savini, Daniel Roebuck, Clint Howard, and Jason Patric (The Lost Boys)
The film leaves the way open for another film in the series; and apparently a fourth is already in pre-production. Not surprising really, since Terrifier 3 has topped the box office in the US for a couple of weeks.
Greg King
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Greg King has had a life long love of films. He has been reviewing popular films for over 15 years. Since 1994, he has been the film reviewer for BEAT magazine. His reviews have also appeared in the Herald Sun newspaper, S-Press, Stage Whispers, and a number of other magazines, newspapers and web sites. Greg contributes to The Blurb on film
