The first reactions to the newest installment in director Damien Leone’s blood-soaked, low-budget slasher-comedy franchise are in, but is “Terrifier 3” good enough to get fans into the gory Christmas spirit in October? If you’re already into the “Terrifier” franchise, the answer based on early reviews is almost certainly “yes.” The film made its Fantastic Fest debut on Thursday, and audiences are already describing it as the most sickening, creatively evil installment in the franchise yet.
There’s no word on whether anyone passed out or threw up at the screening the way plenty of people reportedly did while seeing “Terrifier 2” in theaters, but then again, fans of the famed genre festival tend to have strong stomachs. Instead, they came away with praise to spare after witnessing “Terrifier 3” in all its apparent gory glory. /Film’s own Jacob Hall calls the sequel “one of the nastiest horror movies ever made” in his positive review, but also noting that it’s impossible to recommend “a horror movie so nasty and nightmarish that it’s bound to be an endurance test for even genre buffs with the most hardened nerves and strong stomachs.”
Art the Clown is back for the goriest installment yet
“Terrifier 3” looks like it could shape up to be a hit of hyperbolic proportions, just like its predecessors. Critic James Preston Poole said in a post to X that the film is “truly evil,” adding, “and I mean that in the best possible way.” Writer Alex Papaioannou is in agreement, declaring the film “some absolutely depraved sicko s**t (complimentary)” in his own X reaction post. Filmmaker and columnist Ryan Ranc revealed in an X post that we might not be off the hook, vomit-wise, as he says the film features “some gag-worthy kills.” He also declared that “the gore tops the previous entries and Art is more malicious than ever.”
Unsurprisingly for a franchise known for its splatter film tendencies, plenty of the reactions focus on the movie’s nastiness, gore, and transgressive qualities. Journalist and Lionsgate digital coordinator Noah Levine wrote on X that the movie “goes there and then goes 54 steps further,” calling it “an absolute splatter fest of unseen proportions.” Meanwhile, Germain Lussier perfectly summed up the feeling some fans have watching the movies, posting, “Terrifier 3 was, without question, the most disgusting, gory, vile thing I’ve ever seen. I kind of enjoyed it?”
The cast and effects are being praised, while critics are mixed on the writing
While the “Terrifier” movies are more often measured by the quantity of their on-screen entrails than by the quality of their filmmaking, it sounds like the runaway success of the second film has potentially led to a style upgrade for the latest, comparatively higher-budget installment. Papaioannou insists that “the movie looks AMAZING,” singling out two split diopter shots in particular, while Poole praises the film’s “truly sickening practical effects” and critic Cris Parker singles out (via X) both the effects and “moody dark aesthetic as highlights of the sequel.
The film’s cast also got some love, with particular focus on the return of “Terrifier 2” final girl Lauren LaVera. “LaVera is such a great lead,” Levine wrote, while Papaioannou noted that she gets an “all-timer final girl sequence.” He and Ranc also point out the talents of star David Howard Thornton, who has mastered the art of transforming into Art The Clown over the years, while Poole asserts that LaVera is “THEE final girl.” Predictably, the franchise’s weak points also remain the same as ever: a few critics note that its mythology and narrative elements aren’t quite as strong as the rest of the movie, with Ranc noting that he “still [has] a lot of questions about the story” and critic Matt Donato, posting to Bluesky, concluding that “the film is dragged out, and scattershot storytelling is an issue.”
As a Christmas horror expert, Donato notes that the movie “makes a mess of biblical imagery and holiday cheer (in [both] good and meh ways).” Others were more impressed with the lore. YouTuber Cody Leach wrote on X that the movie “nicely blends the tone of the previous 2 while pushing the lore and characters forward in interesting ways,” while Poole noted that the franchise mythology “is getting more and more intricate.” Looper critic Matthew Jackson was especially effusive about the film, posting the following to X: “#Terrifier3 is my favorite of the series so far. A showcase of gore and a maturation of Leone’s ability to shift from impish to emotional in an instant. Harrowing and hilarious at the same time.”
Most of the “Terrifier 3” reactions we’ve seen to date include the disclaimer that existing fans of the franchise will enjoy the movie, so it seems likely that if you were lukewarm on “Terrifier” one and two, you might feel the same about this film. If you do like the previous movies, though, brace yourself for a singularly disgusting and entertaining moviegoing experience. “Terrifier 3” premieres in theaters October 11, 2024.
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