Monday, April 12

Some quick thoughts on Night of the Demons 3 (Unrated) (1996)

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After an impromptu convenience store robbery gone wrong, a group of cookie cutter twenty-something teens unknowingly take refuge in Hull House and beckon "demonistress" Angela once more. Commence boring rehash of Kevin Tenney's first Night of the Demons.

So I snag a shitload of flicks over the weekend and what do I do? Naturally, I watch what might be the shittiest selection out of the stack almost immediately. Okay, Night of the Demons 3 isn't exactly "shitty". Much like '90's Demon Wind and '94's Pumpkinhead II, this currently final entry in this trilogy is too damn vanilla and uneventful in every respect. If anything, this sequel proves essentially remaking an original film within its own franchise might be worse than a separate "re-imagining".

This Jim Kaufman-directed/Kevin Tenney-scribed film has many of the same elements along with the basic premise of the first raunchy gem. The failure of this effort arrives in the form of all this regurgitation being undeniably and substantially watered down; right down to the display of three rather so-so sets of boobs that just can't compete with the combined beaming headlight power of Ms. Quigley and Ms. Terashita. I guess you can't blame them for trying; though Night of the Demons 3 could honestly be retrofitted into a Halloween TV special on the Hallmark Channel for the kiddies with a few careful cuts. Saying that, this eighty-five minute "unrated" cut has no teeth with gore regulated to three quick done-to-death gags in the climax with the rest left to the whims of goofball pranks. The worst offense of all is that not only do you rapidly feel Kaufman's film to be a chore; the cast and crew probably very much felt the same way as they went through the motions. Not to mention Amelia Kinkade as Angela looking noticeably less hot both in-and-out of demonic form than in the previous entries.

The fast-moving convenience store shootout is the only thing that enlivens the proceedings. It's as if director Larry Clark briskly walked through the set and farted on his way to get somewhere else. Before and after, Night of the Demons 3 falls right back into slumber. It's fine to safely avoid this one. I'm also fairly certain Wikipedia is mistaken with a listing of a $111 million gross; if that were the case we'd be subject to Night of the Demons 17: Premenstrual Hades Cometh this Halloween. I'd wholeheartedly suggest either a revisit or seeking out of Mike Mendez's cathartic The Convent instead. If you're still interested in NotD 3, avoid the out-of-print Canadian DVD from Seville as it has scenes chopped out over this unrated Republic Pictures/Paramount VHS.
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1 comment:

Morgan said...

I don't remember seeing this one, but I've seen the first two. I think I might pass this one.

...do you dare tread upon the staircase?

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