Some spoilers ahead forTerrifier 3.
The unfortunate truth about theTerrifierhorrorfranchise is that the blood and gore is the unique selling point, but it isn’t the only thing it has to offer. Sure, the first movie feels more like a practical effects demonstration than a feature-length narrative, but the second entry added a bit of story to its violence. Each sequel seems to step closer to the tenuous boundaries of feeling like a real movie. Near the conclusion ofTerrifier 3, it finds something somewhat worthwhile to say.
Those who don’t enjoy theTerrifierfranchise still have at least one reason to be interested in it. It’s a gargantuan success story, turning a tiny independent investment into a jaw-dropping box-office return. This could bethe newParanormal Activity, potentially leading to a similar boom in gory slasher outings. It’s hard to imagine that trick working out multiple times, however. A return to the glory days of slasher movies wouldn’t go amiss.
Are theTerrifiermovies more than mindless gore?
On October 11th,Terrifier 3’s release date, film critic and author Patrick Bromley issued a sincere request to the rest of the film community via Twitter. He openly begged other viewers to discuss theTerrifierfranchise beyond the blood and gore they bring to the table. Writer/director/producer Damien Leone issued this response two days later:
The responses vary between indignant insistence that violence is the point and that digging deeper is a pretentious waste of effort and hardcore fans swearing by the deeper storytelling details. Even the people who love these movies seem quite divided on their central narrative elements.
In truth, theTerrifiermovies are shockingly Christian. That might be tough to square with the violence, but anyone paying attention will discover a bizarre level of devotionto old-school Christian dogma. By the end of the second film, it’s clear that Art is in service to literal demons, and the final girl, Sienna Shaw, gets her powers from real angels. There’s no metaphor here. Demons from hell empowered a human or human-like serial killer to carry out a campaign of terror with the ultimate end goal of corrupting humankind. Art is the biblical beast, and the Little Pale Girl is some sort of demon on Earth. However,constant references to the Bibledon’t really provide the franchise with a central theme.
Do theTerrifiermovies have a central theme?
Elements of theTerrifiertrilogy express thoughts on certain things, but it’s hard to suggest any thematic throughline. The first movie is the most painful thorn in the side of any deeper meaning. It’s utterly devoid of substance, offering little more than a few subversions of expectations to break up the violence.Starting with the second entry, the characters and concepts started to matter. Still, the second and third films are sporadic in their theming. The central “good vs. evil” conflict is less of a theme and more of a justification for the events on-screen. The third film is rapidly approaching something more substantial in its thesis, but there’s still room to grow.
IsTerrifier 3doing anything new?
TheTerrifierfranchise takes place in a world free from light.Violence, pain, and miseryseem to govern every element of their grotesque reality. Art is a corrupting force, seemingly spreading darkness and hopelessness wherever he goes. In the wake of Art’s killing spree, some become obsessive fans.Terrifier 3depicts that concept through adults in full cosplay and the awful true crime podcast hosts. The film starts to feel as if it’s making a commentary on violence in the media, but almost every character involved dies in a way that contributes nothing to that theme. The story wants to make a point, but it’s a slave to gory kills, brutally wrapping up every interesting thread in the same overlong way, rather than ever paying anything off. In its third act, however,Terrifier 3acknowledges the complete moral voidat the core of its universe.
The big final horror sequence sees Vicky Hale, the new vessel for the demonic Little Pale Girl, attempt to possess Sienna Shaw. She does so bykilling several people she lovesand explicitly telling her that the life she leads is a miserable, pointless existence that will never see another moment of relief. Here, fans learn that the innate, unavoidable sense of spiritual dominance Art brings into every encounter is the corrupting influence of the demons from beyond the veil. All the blood and gore, even the human souls that once animated that discarded viscera, are sacrifices in a much higher game. It’s a story about the Christian God nominating a single Christ-like figure to suffer and survive for the benefit of humanity. It casts the mundane world as it is, shows the audience what the devil does to it, and nominates a savior. It’sThe Passion of the Christby way ofThe Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
There’s a dash of the Bible in most stories, butTerrifieris not subtle about its influences or anything else. As it gradually fleshes out itsbizarrely Christian narrative, theTerrifierfranchise keeps stepping closer to a central thematic decision. Yes,Terrifieris more than blood and gore. It’s also a Christ narrative that wants to make the crucifixion look mild by comparison. The question worth asking of the fan base is whether that makes it any more meaningful.
