Terrifier 3 Review – Lore, Gore, and More of the Same

It’s hard not to feel like writing a review of Terrifier 3 is a waste of time. You already know whether you have a taste for the exploits of Art the Clown. Yet again, the murderous mime slashes, strangles, and slaughters his way through one half-formed character after another. Meanwhile, the rest of the narrative digs for something interesting and occasionally finds it.

Damien Leone sure loves horror movies. If you can say nothing else about him, you can accurately say he’s a fan, admirer, and student of the genre. He packs nearly every shot with callbacks and references to his favorite franchises. From Art smashing through a door like Jack Nicholson to an old mansion with Amityville-esque windows, Leone wants you to know that he likes a lot of the same movies you do.

Time Heals Some Wounds

We rejoin Art the Clown’s headless corpse five years after his brutal would-be demise. Well, in truth, we initially rejoin him in a Christmas-themed slasher scene to ensure no one gets bored early. Art’s ill-defined spiritual dominance remains so great that slapping any head on any body will keep him up and killing without issue. Meanwhile, final girl Sienna Shaw deals with the corrosive trauma of an encounter with Art. Sienna is the film’s shining light. In a world of darkness, corruption, and hopelessness, Sienna carries on. She’s spent the last half-decade in and out of mental hospitals while her brother slips away to college. Terrifier 3 sees her attempt to recapture normalcy by moving in with her aunt, uncle, and beloved cousin. As expected, Sienna’s fears threaten to ruin her new life just as Art prepares to prove her right.

Related: 5 Horror Sequels That Were Actually Good

I feel at odds with the Terrifier franchise fan base. The parts of the movies they seem to like usually involve Art doing something violent with a big dumb smile on his face. The parts I enjoy all center around the other star of the show. Sienna Shaw is a generational final girl for a generation that doesn’t have nearly enough of them. The moment Lauren LaVera joined this franchise was the moment its heart started beating. What is suffering without a real person experiencing it? Classic slashers often set up a handful of unlikeable jerks with one character trait each so that the audience feels fine watching them get butchered. Terrifier does the same, but it also provided the world with one character who genuinely deserves better. It is only through the lens of a resilient and sincere human being that we find meaning in suffering.

Clowning Around

Art is the Terrifier franchise’s constant. He’s pretty much exactly the same in each iteration, and fans wouldn’t have him any other way. Even as everything else improves on a technical level, Art requires no update. The third entry adds lore to his presence but not enough to overburden him with explanations. The appeal of the character still comes from David Howard Thornton’s expressive glee. At one point, he reacts to Santa with childish delight, genuinely selling something innocent about the character. This outing pairs him with Samantha Scaffidi’s victim-turned-accomplice, Vicky. The presence of a killer with a voice oddly places Art in the straight man role at times. It’s a bizarre change-up that adds a touch of variety to his scenes. Still, cruelty is the core of the character, and I spend most of his screentime hoping his will be the next body on the chopping block.

Related: Even Art The Clown Couldn’t Handle A Scene in ‘Terrifier 3’

We must accept Art as the defining slasher villain of the 2020s, though we don’t have to like him. There’s an undeniable charm to Jason Voorhees. For all of the violence that hockey-masked zombie commits, he seems to carry out his duties with workmanlike efficiency. Magic swords aside, Art the Clown’s greatest weakness is time management. He simply can’t help but draw out every stab and strike until you’re begging for the brevity of a Mortal Kombat fatality. Art also lacks the creativity or consistency of Freddy Krueger. Sure, he has a bunch of tools and weird ways to use them, but Freddy bothered to match his methods to his targets. There’s seemingly very little thought given to who gets which death. They could slot just about any character into any death scene without an issue. Art is the winner by default, substituting deeper themes for deeper wounds.

Casting Counts

There are a lot of interesting character actors on display in Terrifier 3, but few of them get much time to shine. WWE Superstar Chris Jericho returns after his brief appearance in the second film. Star Trek great Clint Howard and fellow Rob Zombie veteran Daniel Roebuck share a scene. Beloved special effects wizard Tom Savini has a cameo. These fun little nods fill out the oddly stacked cast with interesting talent. LaVera and Thornton are the twin stars, but we know we’ll see countless other victims, so they might as well be compelling. These short-lived targets offer a few worthwhile themes to the script. There’s a true crime podcaster who veers dangerously close to providing the movie with a unique statement on violence. It’s all ultimately set dressing for the central blood and guts.

Related: The Ending of ‘Terrifier 2’, Explained

Terrifier 3 has everything fans will expect. You need to go into this film with the knowledge that another entry is on the way. Not having that information may lead you to walk away a bit frustrated with the plot. Without wishing to spoil, it doesn’t move things along quite as far as I would like for a 125-minute movie. You already know whether you’re excited for this one. Say what you will about Art the Clown; he gives you what you paid for.