Movie Talk: The Terrifying Terrors of the Terrifier Trilogy

​Hello, everyone.  Welcome to another episode of moviemanMDG's "Movie Talk", where I talk about everything film-related.  If you're like me, you usually want to watch movies related to a specific holiday every year.  Sure, there are other options to choose from, but there's always something about watching these movies that gets us into the holiday spirit.  Halloween is no exception, with a plethora of horror films and television shows being released around that time to satisfy our spine-chilling needs.  Whether they're recent, old-school, or even ones that reside in the far reaches of our streaming services, horror movies are the pinnacle of All Hallow's traditions besides trick-or-treating and stuffing our mouths with cavity-inducing candy.  

Whenever October rolls around, I watch a horror film almost every night to get into the Halloween spirit.  Sometimes, it's out of good fun, challenging myself not to be haunted by constant nightmares after watching them.  But, at other times, I use the opportunity to check out specific films I haven't viewed before, including those that recently became talks of the town.  This year is that time regarding the latter, as I'm about to embark on a new horrific journey this Halloween season.  That's right, folks.  For the first time in my life, I'm about to confront the deadliest clown in cinematic history!  No, I'm not talking about the Joker.  I already tackled that clown a few weeks ago.  I'm talking about the new killer clown who shows no mercy in torturing people: The infamous Art the Clown!  

First introduced in the anthology horror film, "All Hallows' Eve", in 2013, Art the Clown is highly notorious for his demonic and merciless personality and extremely gruesome kills.  Seriously, his kills are sadistic enough to make the "Saw" movies look teen-rated by comparison.  At least, that's what I assumed based on the audience's reactions.  Despite that, the psychotic serial killer's first appearance was popular enough to launch a spin-off franchise featuring the character called "Terrifier" in 2016.  Helmed by Damien Leone, who directed "All Hallows' Eve", the first "Terrifier" movie entered the cinematic competition through his Indiegogo campaign, with David Howard Thornton taking over the role of Art instead of Mike Giannelli from "All Hallows' Eve", who retired before production began.  Let's just say it had been getting a lot of talk for reasons we didn't expect.  

While "Terrifier" was received positively for its practical effects, its underdeveloped plot and characters amid the bloodshed didn't take the world by storm.  Despite its mixed reception, "Terrifier" would later become a cult classic among horror fanatics for its intent to push the boundaries of the slasher-splatter elements, especially the gore.  This resulted in the birth of a new horror franchise, with 2022's "Terrifier 2" defining Art as the new face of slasher cinema.  Its recent installment, "Terrifier 3", has already been making waves at the box office, with a fourth film currently in development to close off the narrative arc introduced in the second film.  If that's not terrifying enough, Art even made an appearance in the Peacock series "Bupkis" with Pete Davidson and a couple of "Call of Duty" games for good measure.  So, with the release of the third movie, I finally decided to muster up the courage to check out the "Terrifier" movies to see if they're really as controversial and gleefully violent as people claim they are.  In this special Halloween-themed episode of "Movie Talk", I'll be reviewing each installment of the "Terrifier" franchise, and yes, that includes the recently-released third installment.  So, get your barf bags ready because it's about to get terrifying.

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Terrifier (2016)

Let's get this gory party started with the movie that started the recent horror craze: The first "Terrifier" installment that premiered at the 2016 Telluride Horror Show Film Festival.  Two years later, it was released in limited theaters by Dread Central and Epic Pictures Group, and the rest was history.  The film, which was written and directed by Damien Leone, tells the horrifying tale of Tara Heyes (Jenna Kanell), a young woman who left a Halloween party with her friend, Dawn Emerson (Catherine Corcoran).  The friends are confronted by an enigmatic killer with clown makeup known only as "Art the Clown" (David Howard Thornton), who relentlessly follows them.  Along with Tara's sister, Victoria (Samantha Scaffidi), Tara and Dawn are caught in a deadly game with the killer mime, who seeks to have some gruesome fun with his targets.

With all the talks going on about how violent and messed up "Terrifier" is, I can say that I was well prepared for what I was about to witness.  Plenty of years of watching slasher films, ranging from "Scream" to "Halloween", has led me to this brutally insane experience, and guess what?  It's just what I expected out of the genre.  Regarding the genre elements, "Terrifier" was another enjoyable yet sadistic addition to the horror slasher lineup.  However, when it comes to its storytelling, it's easy to see that this is the first film in the franchise.  The plot is pretty straightforward: You have a group of characters stuck in an apartment building with a crazed clown-mime psychopath who kills them in gruesomely deranged ways until the final girl enters the battlefield.  If you're expecting anything else from the storyline besides that, there's a good chance you'll be disappointed with the final result.  With the film focusing more on the frights and gore than the character depth, I was left not giving a crap about the victims of Art's unhinged personality.  They're basically one-dimensional characters who just wind up at the wrong place and time.

However, if you don't actually mind about how the story turned out, you might find plenty of merits amid Art's killing spree.  One of which is Damien Leone's direction.  While his screenplay followed the traditional rules of the subgenre, I can't deny his attempt at recapturing the B-movie aesthetics of the slasher narrative.  From the cinematography to the cheesiness of its dark comedy, Leone certainly understood the basics of the horror B-movie genre made popular in the 1980s, especially when he embraced and even improved most of those elements.  Once that happens, it becomes a goofily entertaining thrill ride elevated by its tension and gory, conventional kills, primarily due to its impeccable practical effects.  They didn't make me gag like everyone else who witnessed this bloody mayhem, but boy, are they disgusting to look at.  I would also credit David Howard Thornton for his remarkable portrayal of Art, which effectively combines terror with dark comedy, especially when he's disguising his sadism with innocence.  Jenna Kanell and Samantha Scaffidi also did pretty well as Tara and her sister, Victoria, with the latter playing a crucial role in future installments.

Overall, "Terrifier" is an enjoyably brutal throwback to the 80s B-movie genre that's all gore and little substance.  With this being the first film in the franchise, it's understandable that it's left with the slasher basics to form a narrative surrounding this ultra-violent concept.  But, to the film's credit, it embraces the mindlessness and gratuitous mayhem that we usually see in other slasher films from past generations.  As a result, it became a tolerable yet traditional experience that's best watched without eating a full-course meal.  The addition of its terrific practical effects and splatter B-movie vibes also helped elevate the film's enjoyability, although I wouldn't recommend it to those who couldn't stomach gore and violence.  Therefore, I would give this film a C+.  ​

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Terrifier 2 (2022)

All right!  Now that I know what I'm up against with "Terrifier", it's time to take it a step further with the follow-up that fully exposed me to the franchise.  Despite the six-year wait and the COVID-19 pandemic, "Terrifier 2" made its way to the big screen and shocked almost everyone.  As the first installment to be distributed by Cinedigm (now known as Cineverse) and Bloody Disgusting, it was a massive improvement over its predecessor by a long shot.  More impressively, it also made ten times as much money worldwide, with a budget of the same amount as an 80-inch television.  This is primarily due to it being bigger and gorier than the first film, which resulted in numerous reports of audiences fainting or vomiting during screenings.  Either they shouldn't have eaten beforehand, or their stomachs were actually that sensitive.  Either way, it sounded like a challenge I didn't accept until recently.

The story in "Terrifier 2" occurs a year after the events of its predecessor.  Its main focus is Sienna Shaw (Lauren LaVera), a teenager who's left to care for her younger brother Jonathan (Elliott Fullam) and their mother Barbara (Sarah Voigt) following the death of their father.  Unfortunately, the resurrection of Art the Clown (Thornton) and the appearance of an entity, The Little Pale Girl (Amelie McLain), puts a damper on their Halloween plans, as he now seeks to bring upon his bloody wrath on the other unsuspecting victims. However, Sienna learns she is destined to kill Art with a magic sword that can defeat him for good.  In short, this film has a lot more crazy shit compared to its predecessor, especially ones that were supernatural.

As I mentioned before, "Terrifier 2" was the first time I caught wind of the horror franchise entirely.  Unfortunately, I neglected to watch it in the theater because I've heard horror stories about its content and surprisingly beefy runtime.  Seriously, two hours and twenty minutes of gory chaos and splatter mayhem are what I would call insane, considering the reports I read about it, especially the infamous "Bedroom Scene".  For those who watched it and survived, you know the one I'm talking about.  So, I just left it alone until recently when I saw that the first two "Terrifier" movies became available on Prime Video for free.  I survived its predecessor easily, so surely I would be able to stomach two-plus hours of Art mutilating people, right?  Well, yeah.

After watching "Terrifier 2", I can see why this sequel trounces the original.  With the first movie being more of a simplistic approach to the slasher formula, "Terrifier 2" is an expansion of this bloody concept that goes all out on the elements that worked in the first film while improving upon its issues.  The result is a fun and gloriously messy follow-up that offers more of what splatter horror audiences crave, for better or worse.  However, I also find it a bit better than its predecessor for one reason: the narrative.  "Terrifier" was a straightforward slasher movie that's more on showcasing torture porn for an hour and a half than providing a narrative worth caring about.  Fortunately, Damien Leone used the sequel to correct that mistake by delivering a character-driven narrative involving Sienna Shaw amid Art's carnage.  We see not only her and her family struggling over the loss of their father but also Sienna's discovery as the "chosen one" capable of ending Art's reign.  Of course, we all know how that turned out based on the release of "Terrifier 3".

While it's far from emotional and unique regarding its slasher elements and underdeveloped plot, "Terrifier 2" is the type of horror movie that actually gives me someone to root for.  With its focus on making the characters tolerable, the film managed to provide the stakes and suspense that were quite convincing and surprisingly more thrilling.  The first "Terrifier" film also had its share of suspense, but that can only take it so far when its characters are one-dimensional playthings for the creepy mime clown to kill.  While I wouldn't say that the characters in "Terrifier 2" are lovable to a degree, they didn't make me want to cheer for their demise, especially Sienna, whose humane personality filled with terror and tenacity makes her another certified "final girl", but with a revealing yet badass valkyrie suit.  Damien Leone fought long and hard to bring Sienna to life in "Terrifier 2" following its predecessor, and it shows.  Additionally, she was brought to life by Lauren LaVera, whose performance skillfully embodied Sienna's traits with commendable sublime amid the film's grindhouse appearance. 

However, despite having a tolerably entertaining story, "Terrifier 2" showed that too much of a good thing is as unhealthy as consuming too much candy.  One apparent reason was its runtime, clocking in at almost two hours and twenty minutes compared to the first film's 85 minutes.  That's a massive difference between the two, although not in a good way.  While I wasn't bored due to its serviceable pacing and characters, I can understand that it overstayed its welcome, especially with how much brutal carnage it delivered.  Fortunately, it compensated with Damien Leone's direction and its impressive special effects.  Like what he did with the predecessor, Damien Leone effectively utilized the film's splatter grindhouse appeal to provide old-school thrills and puke-inducing shivers, but not in a way that's overly cheap and ignorant.  It's more of a tribute to the traditional slasher films of the 70s and 80s, especially their sequels that went for the supernatural route for their titular killers.  They're dumb, but for horror sequels like "Terrifier 2", they're dumb in a fun way.  Leone also did very well in maintaining the balance of horror and dark comedy, accompanied by another star-making performance by David Howard Thornton, whose portrayal of Art offered the proper amount of corniness and terror to the clown's sadistic nature.

As for the practical effects, let's say they're definitely on another level of terror.  Most horror sequels tend to get away with using CGI to up the ante for their violence and gore.  Some of them worked, while others turned audiences off because of their lack of realism.  Fortunately, "Terrifier 2" didn't resort to this shortcut.  Instead, it continued to rely on practical effects to capture the raw and gruesome fatalities that would make "Mortal Kombat" look like "Street Fighter" in comparison.  Yes, that includes the controversial "Bedroom Scene" involving Art murdering Sienna's friend Allie (Casey Hartnett) for three minutes.  Geez, if that's how long it takes for someone to get murdered, I can't imagine the length of the next murder in the threequel.  Did the kills make me puke?  Nope.  Not at all, although I did find myself squirming from time to time.  But, I am glad they continue to use the practical effects to capture the splatter aesthetics of the 70s and 80s, especially for the brutalities and prosthetic makeup.

Overall, I was surprised at how entertaining "Terrifier 2" was compared to its predecessor.  Regarding its plot, characters, and entertainment value, there is undoubtedly a noticeable jump in quality between the two movies, even though it's far from the "Godfather" of slasher sequels.  Additionally, it retains the usual elements that people loved about "Terrifier", including the sublime yet gross practical effects, Art's gruesome rampage, and the grindhouse aesthetics envisioned by Damien Leone.  While I wouldn't recommend it to those who couldn't stand gore or are not fans of the first film, I would say that it's worth watching for horror enthusiasts.  Heck, I would even recommend it to those who want to challenge themselves to watch it without puking, with or without food in their stomachs.  My best advice is to eat light before watching it.  Therefore, this sequel gets a B.   ​

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Terrifier 3 (2024)

With two "Terrifier" films over and done with, I'm officially caught up with Leone's slasher franchise.  You know what that means?  That's right. I was all set to tackle the recent installment that delivers anything but yuletide cheer: "Terrifier 3".  Like the previous installments, I was hesitant to watch it at first, mainly because of the content, and I hadn't watched the first two films.  But, now that I had seen them, I gained enough confidence to finally check the movie out in the theater before I waited another few months to watch it on demand.  After all, it is part of my Halloween tradition of trying out different horror movies, especially those that occur during Christmas.  Those are what I call "the best of both worlds" regarding celebrating both holidays at once.  If "Silent Night, Deadly Night" and "Black Christmas" can deliver that tradition for both holidays, why can't this movie?

The film, once again written and directed by Damien Leone, occurs five years after the events of "Terrifier 2".  Sienna Shaw (LaVera) is recently released from the mental health center following her bloody encounter with Art the Clown (Thornton).  Now struggling with survivor's guilt, Sienna is residing with her aunt Jess (Margaret Anne Florence), her uncle Greg (Bryce Johnson), and their daughter Gabbie (Antonella Rose), who idolizes Sienna, as they prepare for the Christmas season.  However, their preparations are interrupted by the return of Art, who is now in cahoots with Victoria Heyes (Scaffidi), who's possessed by the Little Pale Girl from the second film.  This forces Sienna to confront her haunted past by continuing her destined role in ending Art's reign of terror.

"Terrifier" and "Terrifier 2" have a common element of paying tribute to the traditional slasher films of the 70s and 80s, especially sequels that take a supernatural route.  Of course, I'm talking about franchises like "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th".  "Terrifier 3" continues this tradition by reflecting on the holiday slasher narrative made famous by films like "Black Christmas".  Tis the season to provide bloody mayhem, as they always say.  While the first two films weren't spectacular, they're effective in delivering the essence of the particular era of the slasher subgenre while also being bloody good fun.  So, it's no surprise that "Terrifier 3" was able to continue this streak.  But the question is whether it's as good or better than the previous films.  Well, it's undoubtedly another improvement over the first film, but better than the second?  Not really, but it's still a satisfyingly gruesome experience altogether.

Damien Leone remained on top of his game by correcting his mistakes from the first film and giving horror fans what they desired.  That includes blood, gore, and many messed-up sequences that'll make you crack up.  More importantly, he isn't afraid to have a little fun with the film's bizarre humor and concept, even if some are too far-fetched for their own good.  However, the real icing on the Christmas cake was its character-driven narrative.  "Terrifier 3" is a continuation of Sienna's arc that started with "Terrifier 2", in which she's traumatized by her confrontation with Art while learning more about her childhood past involving her father (Jason Patric).  This direction gave Sienna some additional depth into her personality and "chosen destiny", further displaying her tolerability and the impressive talents of Lauren LaVera, who once again did a remarkable job with her performance.  However, despite a decent storyline, its screenplay left the movie with plenty of more unanswered questions and some half-baked thematic material, especially its reflection on survivor's guilt and the ending.

Fortunately, Leone continued to show his passion for splatter-slasher aesthetics through his direction.  The horror elements were well-handled without its overuse of cheap jump scares, and the dark comedy that resides with the violence and gore was disgustingly delightful.  But Leone deserves more credit for his approach to the movie's cinematography.  For "Terrifier 3", Leone chose to shoot the film with Panavision anamorphic lenses to make it look like a vintage movie from John Carpenter.  It continued the franchise's tradition of making the installments resemble a specific era of the slasher genre, but it also delivered an authentic grindhouse-like presentation that emphasized its unnerving and icky practical effects.  In films of this nature, the technical aspects are essential in eliciting a profound sense of discomfort and terror.  Leone also managed to fix the runtime, but not by much.  The movie clocks in at two hours and five minutes compared to the second film's eye-popping two hours and 18 minutes.  But even with its shorter length, it still overstayed its welcome based on its gruesome content despite the serviceable pacing.

This installment also gave Victoria Heyes more screen time than its predecessors, but now she assumes the role as the franchise's secondary villain.  This is an intriguing twist of the first film's final girl element that paid off pretty damn well.  Part of that is due to Samantha Scaffidi, who returned for the third time as Victoria.  Despite her minor appearances in the previous two films, Scaffidi was commendable for what she's given regarding Victoria's "final girl" personality.  "Terrifier 3" had Scaffidi go full-on psycho in her expanded role as the possessed Victoria, and the result was a lot more entertaining than I expected.  With her display of terror and unnerving creepiness, Scaffidi delivered a performance that quickly overshadowed her protagonist roles in the predecessors.  Of course, I can't forget about David Howard Thornton, who still reigned supreme in capturing Art's unhinged and kooky personality.

Regarding the film's kills, they benefited profoundly from its practical effects, emphasizing the gore and gross-out prosthetics that'll likely make people lose their Christmas dinner.  However, in terms of how memorable they are, only two of them stood out for me.  One is the opening sequence and the other?  Well, let's say you might not look at a mall Santa the same way again after watching it.  The rest of Art's kills may not pack the same controversial punch as the second film, but they retain the grossness and stomach-churning gore that people come to expect from the "Terrifier" movies.

Overall, "Terrifier 3" decks the halls with plenty of dark humor and vintage violence to satisfy the franchise's fans and horror enthusiasts.  While it doesn't reach similar heights as the second film, it's still an enjoyable yet grotesque experience that continues to correct the mistakes of the 2016 cult classic.  The runtime can be a bit much for people with weak stomachs, and the screenplay didn't hit all of the proper notes in its formula and themes.  However, regarding Leone's direction, compelling main lead, and fantastic practical effects, "Terrifier 3" was a decent time that got me in the mood for the holiday season.  Therefore, I would give the film a B-.

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​So, what are my overall thoughts on this terrifyingly gory slasher franchise?  Well, I can say this: it has been one heck of a journey for me.  I have spent my adult years watching multiple slasher films with similar concepts containing grotesque gore and over-the-top kills, but I neglected to watch "Terrifier" based on my research.  Thankfully, I finally found the courage to join this terrifying club and watch the first three films back-to-back-to-back.  Did I feel nauseous?  Not as much as everybody else.  Was it worth the experience?  Yeah, it was.  They're definitely not horror masterpieces in either shape or form, but I can understand why most horror fans enjoyed it more than I thought they would.  The "Terrifier" movies didn't just recapture the glory days of B-movie horror from the 70s and 80s but also challenged some of the established genre boundaries through their kills and dark humor, mainly from the merciless Art the Clown.  Yes, that includes the children in the third film because Art never thinks of the children.  As a result, the silent supernatural mime resides with the likes of Jason and Freddy Kruger as one of the slasher genre's most memorable antagonists.

It's undeniably common that low-budget horror films spawn overreaching franchises consisting of far-fetched ideas and declining quality.  However, regarding what Damien Leone accomplished in the narrative arc, the legacy and violence it left on people, and the Biblical imagery it referenced, "Terrifier" is certainly one of the slasher underdog stories that's terrifying for the right reasons.  Because of this experience, I'm now curious about the direction they'll go for "Terrifier 4" based on the ending of the third film, especially since it's intended to be the conclusion to the arcs introduced in "Terrifier 2".  Will Sienna finally be able to achieve peace?  Will Art the Clown finally be damned to Hell?  Will Damien Leone go any lower than chopping a kid to pieces?  Those questions will be answered sooner or later.  Until then, I would recommend the "Terrifier" movies to those who grew up with the slasher/grindhouse era…unless they have a weak stomach for gore.  If so, they're better off watching something like "The Nightmare Before Christmas" as their Halloween tradition.  With that said, thank you for reading this episode of "Movie Talk", and have a safe and happy Halloween.