Relentless 3

Let's recap Det. Sam Dietz (Leo Rossi). In the original, he's a former NYC cop who moves to LA, catches his first serial killer but not before things hit too close to home. In the sequel 'Dead On' mere months have passed and already he's on the case of another. He closes it and then makes amends to his family. In 'Relentless 3' he moved away, but things haven't worked out (divorced) and now he's back in LA. Where he's asked to consult on another serial killer because as Captain Phelan (Tow Bower) puts it "you're the best we've got."

The series is strictly meat & potatoes following a bare bones formula, but logic is starting to fall by the way side. Why is Dietz considered the best? By my calculations, he hasn't been doing this very long at all. How can he have caught four killers with ex-partner Roy (Robert Costanzo) given the timeline? What's Dietz's obsession with answering the phone at the worst of times? Can he treat any woman in his life right? His son? Catching killers above all else is this what they mean by 'Relentless'?

Rossi continues holding his own. Thankfully he's been dialed back from the loudmouth jerk he was in the previous entry. I always enjoy seeing character actors such as Bower (Die Hard 2, Clear & Present Danger) and Costanzo (Total Recall, Undisputed 3: Redemption). Likewise with William Forsythe. His killer is an improvement from the last sequel, but unfortunately under developed given past history.

After 'Relentless 3' there's no getting past this basic by the numbers cop / killer routine where they don't do more than necessary. The whole angle they're trying for here isn't fleshed out & feels hollow. The ending has a very much thrown together & rushed quality to it. Slightly better than the first sequel, but that isn't saying much.

... it's rubbish.

How it has a 5.3 rating I can't begin to imagine!

One example should be enough to stop you from wasting your time: The baddy strangles a policeman with ONE hand, while holding down ONE of the cops hands with his other. Why was the cop not bashing the baddy's head in with his free hand, or perhaps indulging in his own one handed strangling of said baddy, you might ask ...

I have not the faintest idea.

The first was mediocre, the second was great, but the third entry STINKS! Leo Rossi's character here is repulsive and not likable in any way. Everybody acts unbelievably stupid here. Pre-release cuts to prevent the movie getting an NC-17 also hurt the film. The actor who plays the villain actually isn't bad, considering the material he's given.

The second straight to video sequel to William Lustig's 'Relentless' is a sleepy, straight forward Los Angeles serial killer outing. It can be quite unpleasant and loathsome with its dour approach to the generic material. Too bad it stays on cruise control for most part with a real lack of thrills and investigative intrigue for such a short winded running time. Leo Rossi's role is now more prominent, yet his delivery feels more like someone tiredly going through the emotions. The smart-alec humour which worked in the previous films, just doesn't have the same effect here. In a way there's no bite to it with mainly poe faced Rossi's "I rather be elsewhere" attitude sort of coming out in the dialogues. Robert Costanzo fairs much better as his detective partner. On the other hand William Forsythe's perversely smarmy, and underlit intensity as the killer does all the heavy lifting. There's personal history between the two characters, detective (Rossi) and killer (Forsythe), which the script later reveals. Sadly this drummed up angle, goes nowhere and in the end we are left with a very unmemorable, and underwhelming payoff. Meg Foster is also missed.

As with the second in the series, this keeps getting better than the previous film but also gets sleazier, so there is a good and bad material here. It's a rough film, make no mistake, but it's very interesting all the way. It has many of the same elements the two other films had: some grisly scenes, rough language but a fast-moving film which really goes fast considering it's only 80-some minutes long.

Leo Rossi once again stars but I liked his partner (Robert Costanzo) much better. William Forsythe once again plays a creepy killer. He seems to be typecast. The female lead is someone I haven't seen before or since: attractive Signy Coleman.

I did get confused a couple of issues such as how the detectives figured a few things out and that end. Also, whatever happened to "Marianne?" They do discuss something briefly but I couldn't get it. I don't claim this film is a great work of art: just entertaining.

Without giving anything I will say I liked the ending which wasn't the usual clichéd one. This is the only one in the series I would consider re-purchasing for DVD but it isn't available.