That being said, we're now officially in the last week of October! It's amazing how quickly it's gone, but there's still plenty of movies to get through. So let's do it to it!
PHANTASM III: LORD OF THE DEAD (1994)
Blogtober Qualifications: Zombies, yellow blood, tall men, ridiculous weapons
*Spoiler warnings for Phantasm (1979) and Phantasm II (1988)*
After the twist ending of Phantasm II, Mike (A. Michael Baldwin) and Reggie (Reggie Bannister) are, despite all appearances, not dead. Everyone else is, however, with the exception of the series' main villain, the Tall Man (the late Angus Scrimm).
Before too long, though, Mike is kidnapped by the Tall Man and his minions, and Reggie, quadruple-barreled shotgun in hand, is off on a quest to find him. Along the way he encounters a young boy named Tim (Kevin Connors), who has super powers. Okay, not technically, but it's the only way to explain some of the things he's capable of. The two later meet Rocky (Gloria Lynne Henry), an ex-soldier proficient with nunchaku (it was 1994, what do you expect?). It's this motley crew that, for various reasons, set off to take down the Tall Man once and for all. And maybe they'll be successful this time.
Probably not, though.
Okay, it's time for full disclosure. Phantasm is one of my pet horror series. You know how it is, you like the classics that everyone else loves, but certain ones just become special to you for some reason. That's how Phantasm (and the Chucky and Hellraiser series) are for me. The Phantasm movies are so weird, and sometimes downright dumb, but they're just so dang consistent with it all. Something quirky or strange from one movie becomes lore in the next. It knows it's bizarre and it revels in it. Besides, name another film series that managed to have three actors appear in every movie.
Hell, Rocky only made it to thirty that way.
So yeah, I like Phantasm overall, but how is Phantasm III? Well, it actually might be my favorite one so far. Let's take a closer look. First we'll get the actors over with real quick.
Angus Scrimm is as great as ever as the Tall Man. It's hard to imagine what this series would be without him as the menacing villain, and it's nice to know that he got to reprise the role one last time (in 2016) before he passed away.
Mike doesn't get to do much throughout the movie, but he's still doing fine in the role. Some interesting things are done with him, some hints for things to come. It'll be interesting to see where they go.
Reggie is sleazier than ever, but I find myself incapable of disliking him. Hell, consider all the things he goes through, usually to save or protect his friends. And he's nobody special, just a no-name schlub who happens to have a nice car (and a big gun). Maybe he's earned the right to be an ass every now and then.
Tim is one of the two new characters, and he actually does pretty well, considering the age of the actor playing him. I'm not sure of his exact age, but he's obviously pretty young. Don't get me wrong, he wouldn't win an Oscar, but he's never annoying, and his lines rarely fall flat. It also helps that his character is not annoying at all, and in a lot of ways is more capable than Reggie or Mike.
Rocky was an interesting conundrum for me. When the character was first introduced, I did not like her at all. She'd fit in well in the troop of marines in Aliens, because she's super macho and tough. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with a tough female soldier type. I think they just pushed it a bit into overboard territory here... that is, at first. As the movie wore on and a few other little facets of her were shown off, I actually came to like her quite a bit. She's kind to Tim and doesn't take any crap from Reggie. In fact, the last interaction she has with Reggie made me laugh out loud. So yeah, that took an interesting turn.
There's also these three criminal characters who are horrible horrible people, and they're clearly around just to get killed. Good news there.
The story here is somewhat similar to the second movie, though with a bit more exploration into just what the Tall Man is and what he's trying to accomplish. There's also a really interesting return appearance by a character from one of the earlier movie. I liked how it was implemented, and it shed some light on a few things.
Like I said above, I also like some of the hints that were dropped about what the connection is between the Tall Man and Mike, and why Mike is so important. It's very intriguing, and it feels like there's a plan in place for where the story will go. I mean, there's not, but it's nice to feel like there is.
There's one other thing I want to bring up though. Now, this is not a complaint, just an observation. I get the strong indication that Don Coscarelli, the writer/director, had been reading Stephen King's Dark Tower series before making this movie. Phantasm III came out three years after The Waste Lands, the most recent Dark Tower novel at the time, and I couldn't help but notice some similarities.
For starters, there's the general feeling of the two things, with characters wandering these bleak, sparsely-populated areas. And then there's also the fact that the four main characters even match up to the Gunslinger's cadre, sort of. If you want to assume that Reggie is Roland (the oldest and ostensibly most experienced one), Mike is Eddie (Mike is about as useful as someone going through withdrawal), Rocky is Detta/Odetta (the black female who switches between anger and kindness), and Tim is Jake (the kid who's a pretty good shot).
Okay, so it's not a perfect comparison, and I'm making some leaps in logic. And again, it isn't a complaint, because if you're going to be inspired by something, The Dark Tower is a good one. It's mostly just interesting how similar the two feel to me.
All that said, though, I really enjoyed Phantasm III. Sure, there are goofy parts and awkward parts, and I'm pretty sure there's no ultimate plan for where the series is going at this point. But what's here is just so dang entertaining I can't help but love it. I am genuinely excited to watch part four next year.
Now stick around, because the review that was delayed yesterday will be up in just a few. It's got vampires~
Until next time!
Current interests:
Listening - Dio: The Last in Line (1984)
Playing - Cuphead (2017)
Reading - B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth: The Exorcist (2016)
Watching - Thunderbirds Are Go! (2015)
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