Director: Don Coscarelli
Year: 1994
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Supernatural
Plot:
Escaping from the cemetery, the two friends come together to warn them about The Tall Man and his nefarious plans which leads them to a deserted town where they are able to reclaim their friend from his grasp and lure the group into a final showdown for the fate of mankind.
Review:
While not as clever or as scary as the first two, this is still a solid, enjoyable entry. One of the film's best factors is that it does some much-needed exposition on the series which was sorely needed at this point as it blends in what has been given so far. The true story of The Tall Man is given here, and while not exactly clever does have a convincing aura of the series and is nicely appreciated. Finally giving the secret behind the Silver Spheres is also a nice touch, and their revelation is quite spooky and really chilling. There's also no shortage of action here, from the opening ambush in the cemetery escaping from the original encounter to the dispatch of the crooks around his house and even including the customary hearse chase that ends in a big crash and fireball, which is one of the greatest ones done.
There's even a spectacular showdown that takes place in an incredibly chilling Gothic mausoleum, with long, empty corridors, one-off rooms, and plenty of equipment inside which is the film's highlight sequence. Filled with inventive fight techniques, some really clever chases, and a nonstop pace, this here is a really glorious ending that sends it out on an appropriate high-point. This even manages no shortage of gore here, including the still-messy head-drilling-silver-sphere sequence that still unleashes a gallon of blood, as well as some quite fun kills and plenty of stellar creature effects. The Tall Man is at his most creepy here, finally being able to do something constructive to his evil personality and he even has a really creepy scene, being lit by a suddenly-changing light during a chase down a hallway that only shows his outline in the darkness. With a fun, workman-like pace and a couple of neat throwbacks to the other entries, this here is a pleasantly entertaining entry.
This doesn't have a whole lot of problems. The biggest one here is that the film doesn't make a lot of sense, despite answering several questions about the series. There is still no explanation for what's the actual plan of The Tall Man's attack of where he came from, and these are perfect questions to answer this deep in the series. They prevent it from being a stand-alone film like the first two, which could be enjoyed despite not having seen the other, and this one needs the others to make sense. There are also a couple of unnecessary sequences in here, most noticeably the orphanage scene, that served nothing to the series and don't seem to have any reason to be there. These aside, this is a really good overall entry.
Overview: ***.5/5
A workable sequel that gets a lot right and only a few flaws that bring it down, this one serves as a rather fun entry in the franchise that doesn't reach the top steps like the others but isn't near the depths as the rest of the series. Give it a look if you're a fan of the series thus far or looking for a film with these kinds of positives but those turned off by the series or this type of genre feature should heed caution.
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