3 from Hell

I was lukewarm on House of 1,000 Corpses, but The Devil's Rejects remains one of the most interesting horror films of the past 15/20 years, so I was eagerly awaiting to see what Rob Zombie would do to bring his Firefly clan back. Pretty soon into the film, I realized that, sometimes, it's better to end on a high note than to drag things out past their expiration dates. After their 70's killing spree, the Firefly clan have been sent to prison. They quickly write out Captain Spaulding (due to Sid Haig's poor health) and bring in a character we've never even seen or heard of before that's supposed to be some sort of half-brother of Otis and Baby (played by Richard Brake). He helps them escape and pretty soon they're back on the run, murdering and causing havoc wherever they go. Structurally, 3 From Hell is more Devil's Rejects than House of 1,000 Corpses, but the problem is they copy that structure to a T. Once the gang's back, there's a siege upon two couples that's very much like the siege upon the country band in The Devil's Rejects. After that, they all get in a van and end up in Mexico which feels just like the scenes in Ken Foree's ranch in that same film. There's also a character who wants to avenge a family member who died at the hands of the Firefly family like in that film. It feels like Rob Zombie took the structure of that film and just barely changed a few details to make it seem different enough to greenlight. 3 From Hell feels like one of those great TV shows that's managed to overstretch itself out into 2 or 3 more mediocre and unnecessary seasons where the actors and writers we used to love are mostly going through the motions. It feels oddly passionless and pedestrian throughout as if everyone was just trying to play it safe enough until they could get their paycheck. There are a few highs here and there, but it's far from a return to form or a necessary addition to the series.

Rob Zombie is possibly the most controversial, off beat, and, in my opinion, interesting filmmaker working today. But after the trippy Halloween 2, the downright surreal Lords of Salem, and the haphazard 31, he is on shaky ground with his own fanbase. And I openly admit I enjoy all of his crazy, wild, over the top movies to varying degrees. But I get why people didn't love his last three movies. So maybe it was logical he would go back to the well and bring back his most iconic characters for a direct follow up to his undisputed masterpiece, The Devil's Rejects. As it turns out, Otis (Bill Moseley), Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie), and Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig) all survived the bloody shootout at the climax of the previous movie. My buddies have a fan theory that it has something to do with Dr. Satan but he is not mentioned here. All three are in jail 10 years later and the film opens with an interview from Spaulding and Otis. Soon after, Otis stages a bloody prison break with his never-before-mentioned petty crook brother Winslow (Richard Brake who the played the great villain Doom Head in Zomvie's previous movie 31). Otis, eager to solidify his name as "Public enemy No. 1", and WInslow, a goofy but dangerous sidekick along for the ride, decide their next move is to break Baby out of jail. In the meantime, Baby has gone absolutely NUTS during her time in jail and she babbles, rages, and attacks, making life miserable for the guard stuck watching her (an unrecognizable Dee Wallace). The prison warden is a good old boy jerk played by Zombie regular Jeff Daniel Phillips. He and Otis have a Hannibal Lecter vs. Dr. Chilton style rivalry that we know will have to pay off. But there are plenty of others aware of the notorious Firefly cult. I have to say two things about this movie. First, I loved the first half of this movie. It does everything I wanted out of a Devil's Rejects follow up. The cast is great, the violence is brutal, and the dark, vulgar humor Zombie enjoys so much mostly lands. It is fantastic seeing evil antihero Otis back to murdering and mayhem while it's fun seeing Baby back in action and literally nuttier than ever. I also love that Rob Zombie refuses to back off his fearless, grimy, and utterly un-PC style. This is a mean, nasty movie that makes no apologies and in an era of overly cautious, tame entertainment this is a great antidote to the safe spaces we are used to. The down side is that the movie is a little on the plotless side. It feels like a prison break movie but the second half of the movie, which involves a trip to Mexico, feels almost like a totally new movie has suddenly started. At that point, 3 From Hell suddenly feels less like a psycho horror movie and more like a Sam Peckinpah movie on crack. I also wish Sid Haig and Danny Trejo, who returns as one half of the bounty hunter duo the Unholy Two, had more than just cameos. I have to admit that I kind of enjoyed how totally amoral this movie is. Otis and his crew are the leads and this flick never pretends that the 3 from Hell are not its literal heroes. But others might take issue with that. I liked this thing a lot and it is good time for fans of rough and brutal cinema. It's just a little under devloped. But Rob Zombie should win some fans back and I truly hope we get another evil adventure with the Firefly clan in the future. Edit: Sid Haig's reduced role was apparently due to his failing health and not any kind of artistic decision on the part of Zombie. Rob Zombie apparently worked very hard to ensure Sid Haig was in this movie at all. And at least Sid Haig got that one last good movie before his death. RIP Sid Haig, a clown that danced for us all for nearly 50 years.

If you are like me, you probably thought that the ending to The Devils Rejects was incredible, almost majestic. TDR was one of the best horror movies at the time and was a great equal. With that said, 3 From Hell was not. If you are someone that just watched House of 1000 Corpses and The Devils Rejects for the first time recently, you might enjoy 3 From Hell. If you have been waiting the 14 years for this movie, it will be a let down. Zombie ended TDR on an incredible note, so having those 14 years to plan out another return of the Firefly family, you would think it would be something unique and unexpected. It wasn't. Your explanation to it was 'odds of their survival are 1,000,000 to 1. They survived'. That's it. I'll put that aside for now. The movie also felt like it was missing a solid plot, but maybe that is what Zombie was going for. The last thing that kind of annoyed me about this movie was 2 scenes. I won't spoil them, but it has almost exactly the same feel as the Hotel scene and the strip club scene in TDR. Overall, it had so much potential and could have been a great movie, but it just failed to hit that level. Worth the 2 hours and $15, but The Devils Rejects will still be Zombies best work in my opinion.

I was very bored and wanted to get up and leave multiple time but made it through the $15.00 I lost to this let down. I love Zombies music and 4 films. This didn't make sense to me, felt watered down for a NC17 rating he needs to call it quits.