Film Review: Terrifier 3
The best one yet...
by Tadd Mecham
Terrifier 3
(three and half out of five stars)
Rating: R: some bloody violence, language, and some sexual material and nudity
Run time: 125 minutes
Director: Damien Leone
Released: 2024
I figured after three films, the Terrifier franchise would have long sank into the realm of being completely unwatchable. But instead they have done the opposite, boosting in quality substantially with each entry.
Terrifier 3 follows Sienna Shaw (Lauren LaVera) and her brother Johnathan (Elliot Fullam) five years after their run in with Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton). After the massacre she lived through, and the bloody end she brought to the Miles County Clown, Sienna struggles with her mental state and the guilt of watching her friends and family die. While on a holiday break with her aunt and uncle she begins to see the possibility that her life could be normal one day. But strange occurrences and the voices in her head herald the impossible return of Art the Clown...and just in time for Christmas.
This entry is sharper, slicker, and absolutely more stomach churning in its excess than its predecessors. Art the Clown, the antagonist of the film, feels completely lived in by this point, with David Howard Thornton pulling both easy laughs and screams with his incredible performance. Samantha Scaffidi is suitably gruesome and horrifying in her role as Victoria Hayes, Art's undead, rotting, sidekick.
There is also the welcome return of Lauren LaVera as Sienna, proving to have true staying power as the series' final girl. Sienna is still just as likable, well-acted, and remains a great character to anchor such an absurd and gruesome story.I can't talk about this film without discussing the practical effects. This is easily the goriest film I have ever seen and the effects are top shelf. Terrifier 3 is the new gold standard for gore. Period.
You will know if this is your cup of tea just by looking at it. But if you are down to watch two hours of an excessive and incredibly well done slasher, then Terrifier 3 will be a perfect addition to your Christmas horror collection.