Phantasm III : Le Seigneur de la mort

As the title states A. Michael Baldwin and Bill Thornbury return as brothers Mike and Jody in Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead. It took about 25 years in between watching part 2 and part 3, but I think it is a good third installment in the series. Although I had minor problems with characters and the story. After Mike is caught by The Tall Man (Angus Scrimm), Reg with his quadruple-barrelled shotgun and skullet in tow goes in search of Mike. He meets Tim (Kevin Conners) and Rocky (Gloria Lynne Henry) along the way. I did enjoy Rocky's character as she was armed with a nun-chunk and attitude for Reg to deal with. It was Tim's character I had minor problems with. It wasn't Connors portrayal, but rather the credibility of the character and his abilities with a gun of a kid who looks like he is 12. Also some villains comes back as laughing zombies. Guess what? Jokes are NOT scary. The more jokes Freddy Krueger cracked the less scary he became. With the story it was beginning to feel that Coscarelli is going back to the same well perhaps too many times by the third movie with some story points, but some of the new characters do assist with this (e.g. Rocky being the attempted love interest and giving Reg some attitude). By the fifth part the well is totally dry. The two points though weren't enough for me to not enjoy the movie as a whole and Scrimm is still and always was great in the role as The Tall Man. But, if you love the spheres they get a real showing here with a lot more info about them, so if that interests you that may be a plus for you as well.

Why did it take me so long to get into the "Phantasm" films, as just in the last two months I got around to seeing the first two films and now the third entry. So far I've enjoyed every one. While I found the quality of this entry not match the previous two, still it's an entertainingly non-stop ride in the quest to stop the Tall Man. It pretty much follows on from the previous edition, capping off that had just transpired. The road trip continues through small rural towns, where an almost apocalyptic feel is crafted. Nonetheless the adventurous tone is there, but it's leaning more for comic humour and flat-out action (in a way similar to the second entry), over the tripped-out atmospheric spookiness.

It's Reggie Banister's show and there's nothing wrong about that because he makes for a likable heroine that's easy to root for. A. Michael Baldwin isn't in it as much (which the chemistry between Mike and Reggie isn't as prominent) and Bill Thornbury reprises his role in rather an innovative manner. Two new ragtag characters find there way in to help out Reggie; played by Gloria Lynne Henry and Kevin Connors. These two bring biting persona's. Angus Scrimm in Tall Man mode is as menacing as ever - in appearance and the voice --- "It's time now BOY".

Director / writer Don Coscarelli keeps the unique vision alive, where his handling seems more focused (especially the writing) and complete, but competently staged with enough flair and panache in numerous sequences. After the last film was produced by a film studio, this entry would go back the low-budget independent roots. The unconventional story isn't as complicated, but this clip show is always on the move and is tension grabbing in its varied ideas. The lively special effects and make-up FX were effectively executed, where it becomes more and more a centre piece with the lethal flying spheres, dimension portals and the legion of dead serving under the Tall Man.

I grew up loving The Phantasm series and in my book the first and second film are untouchable. Phantasm 2 was a studio film with a decent budget. The third film brings Don Coscarelli back to his low budget roots. That is not necessarily a bad thing, the 1st film was made with almost no money, but came out great. James Legross is out as Michael. The original Michael (Michael Baldwin) is back. Of course Reggie Bannister is back to hit the road and try to take out The Tall Man. Angus Scrim also returns to the iconic role of villain. The Phantasm series gets weirder and more sci Fi as it goes. This is no exception. The storyline however is less believable and is riddled with plot holes and supporting characters that come across a little ridiculous. Reggie Bannister is the heart of the movie and should have been an action hero with a billion dollar paycheck. Speaking of action, Phantasm 3 is action packed. However, it was not done as well as it was in the second film. I'm guessing the problems that the film has could have been fleshed out provided there was more time and money to shoot this. I still found Phantasm 3 pretty enjoyable as a whole. I liked it much better when I intially rented it on its video release. The next film from what I remember was really strange and for a Phantasm film, that's saying a lot.

Unlike many other reviewers, out of the Phantasm series, I liked this one the best. They really had fun with this one and didn't take themselves too seriously. And it was actually funny!

The movie picks up where the second one ended, but I don't think you necessarily need to see the first two movies to enjoy this one. There are plenty of flashbacks and, frankly, it's a pretty crazy story to follow in any case. I think this one actually made more sense than the first two.

The first Phantasm was an amateur pet project that was literally a bunch of friends working weekends putting together a horror movie for fun. It was and is a cult hit.

The second movie had more money behind it but, in my opinion, tried to take itself a little too seriously for such ridiculous subject matter.

For me, this movie had the perfect balance of horror and comedy. It was hilarious, horrific, and sometimes both at the same time. Good fun with decent make-up effects and an amazing car stunt with a hearse. I also really liked the way they introduced one of the main characters, the kid. I could see that idea being a great movie on its own: Home Alone done as a horror movie.

In the DVD commentary (yes, believe it or not, I even listened to the commentary) Baldwin asked Angus what the fan reaction to this movie was. He said that people either hated it for the comedy element or loved it because of it. I'm in the latter category.

If you're looking for top-notch acting and dialogue or a story that makes sense, this is not your movie. But if you like b-horror movies on the humorous side, I definitely recommend you give this one a shot.

The second sequel in Don Coscarelli's horror franchise sees Reg (series regular Reggie Bannister) and Mike (the returning Michael Baldwin), pursuing the malevolent Tall Mann (Angus Scrimm) across America as he destroys town after town in his wake, turning the country into a post apocalyptic wasteland. They are joined by the returning Bill Thornbury as Jody, a kind of spirit guide who has the ability to transform into one of the flying spheres, aswell as a tough Amazonian warrioress called Rocky (Gloria Lynne Henry), and a resourceful kid (Kevin Connors) who has been surviving by living in a booby trapped house to deter looters. This movie abandons the surrealist excess that made the previous two films a genuine delight in favour of a more linear plot that is heavy on humour (it plays like a more gleefully sadistic version of Home Alone). It was released direct to video after Universal Studios refused to distribute it after a fall out with Coscarelli, but was still a hit with horror fans winning Fangoria magazines Chainsaw Award for best limited release film.