3 from Hell Reviews

Rob Zombie has proven to be quite the divisive figure in horror circles. While he quickly ingratiated himself with his initial two offerings (House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects), things quickly took a turn for the worst with his grossly misguided attempts at re-imagining the classic Halloween series. While it would later be revealed that studio meddling had much to do with that, it was also undeniable that Zombie's go-to tropes, cliches, and limitations were just as responsible. And so, he seemed destined to never be able to shake the crushing blow of criticism as subsequent efforts became increasingly hard to fund and were met with lukewarm to downright negative reception.

Admittedly, I am a man who is always rooting for Zombie to prevail but his abhorrent dialogue choices and signature "Zombie-isms" seem to stifle any significant growth. What can't be denied the man is his particular eye for striking visuals, his uncanny grasp on the marriage of music and imagery, his dedication to the genre, and his rabidly loyal, albeit niche, following. What also can't be denied is that, at least at one point, he crafted a genuinely fantastic piece of reverent (even in its utter irreverence of the norm) horror cinema.

Indeed, even notable critics like Roger Ebert tipped their hat to what Zombie achieved in "The Devil's Rejects". Not only did he change the tone established in the film preceding (and linked to) it successfully but he also hearkened back to a bygone era of exploitation filmmaking with stunning pitch-perfection. From the gritty, sun-bleached aesthetic to the unflinching violence to the over the top scenarios and dark humor to the incredible feat of making utterly sadistic characters perplexingly likable despite their heinous deeds, "The Devil's Rejects" carved its own place in the mind of even the most skeptical of Zombie's abilities. It only seem natural then to revisit his most famous and beloved Rejects if he were to get his credentials back.

"3 From Hell" is that long-awaited return to his movie roots and on that many were keeping a keen eye on to make their final judgment on Zombie. The verdict? Well, like all things Zombie nowadays, it's complex.

The film somewhat anti-climatically reveals that the Firefly family as we last saw them (shot near to death) just merely survived a hail of bullets. One feels this is a lost opportunity for some fresh blood to be injected into the formula but it is as it is. We are quickly caught up with a faux news report/documentary on the death of Captain Spaulding (the late, great Sid Haig), the escape of Otis Driftwood (with the help of his deus ex machina brother "Foxy"), and the continued incarceration of Baby FIrefly (Sheri Moon Zombie) who has been driven beyond any realm of sanity.

While this setup just oozes with a gorgeous replication of that unique exploitation film feeling and look (down to tones of shockumentaries, women's prison films, and road flicks) it soon becomes evident that Zombie is treading familiar ground. The plot beats are almost identical to "The Devil's Rejects".

In Rejects we had two of the Firefly clan on the run waiting at a motel for the third member of their group, during which time they take a tightly knit group of people hostage, engage in mischief, murder, and mayhem before and after their partner arrives, and then head on the run again only to ultimately end up in a place run by a defacto "overlord" where they are turned into someone who wants them dead and a face off ensues. In "3 From Hell" two of the clan hold a closely knit group hostage to force them to bring the third member to them during which time they engage in mischief, mayhem, and murder before and after their partner arrives, and then they go on the run ultimately ending up in a small Mexican town run by some defacto "mayor" who turns them into someone who is hunting them down and, yes, a faceoff ensues. See the problem? It is an unshakable realization and soon parallels are impossible to ignore.

There is also a couple of nearly laughably bad sequences during the first half of the movie that will leave you rolling your eyes or shaking your head. One involves Baby having visions of a cat-lady in the vents of her prison cell. While her madness is alluded to (as is her association to "cats", in a manner of speaking) the scene just comes of as this abrupt and ludicrous aside. The other is a scene involving Clint Howard as a clown that happens across the psychopaths. It is neither tense or amusing and it only serves to befuddle and take you out of the goings on...all for a worthless throwaway callback.

Another thing noticeably missing is the spark of life and humor that Sid Haig's Captain Spaulding brought to the unhinged affairs in previous installments. He is sorely missed here and, honestly, it takes a bit for the remaining actors and their new comrade Foxy (played by Richard Brake) to feel fully "themselves". Ironically, their best scenes are separate from each other. Haig was really the glue that brought these divergent and devious minds together so well on screen. For the brief moment he does appear onscreen he is bereft of energy and oomph to even carry the few lines he has. You can tell the man was sickly even then and understand why he had to be written out. None of the crude rambunctious nature or menace of the character survives in the face of Mr. Haig who can barely deliver the lines here. It's a pretty sad affair given that he was not long for this world thereafter.

Things seem dreary at this point you might thing but all is not a loss. The film actually picks up in its latter half with the other thing (besides Haig) that is sorely missing from it...the introduction of an antagonist to these, well, antagonistic protagonists. Rejects had Sheriff Wydell (the great William Forsythe) for the family to play against. A cop, who though justified in his actions, proved enough of an asshole to make the Firefly's likable in their mania. In short, Wydell made the Fireflys work by working against them. This film is bereft of a galvanizing presence like Wydell for a woefully long time and it is, sadly, introduced only till the latter portion of the film, despite being somewhat dismissively set up earlier. Introducing this opposing presence much earlier would of done WONDERS for this movie. Instead, we just sit around with unlikable creeps until it comes along.

Given someone to stretch their anti-authoritarian world viewpoint against, the FIreflys shine. Once again their psychotic nature becomes palatable in the face of something keeping them from what they ultimately should represent to the audience, absolute and true freedom; something we can actually root for. Zombie won me over at this point. With a final showdown imminent and his open use of Mexploitation tropes and Mexican culture to add zest to the Firefly's villain, the movie got cooking and was a blast from thereon out.

Many nods to genre film abound. Most notable among these is allusion to "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" which Zombie weaves into the narrative quite nicely. As always, he litters his films with great character actors and beloved genre names playing outrageously oddball characters (most notable among these is Dee Wallace losing herself in the role of a crooked prison guard). Special effects and music stand out, as you'd expect.

In the end, "3 From Hell" is far from perfect but does much to win over the returning audiences by the time it concludes. It's a close call but he pulls it off well enough. It certainly grades above "31" which felt like a visually rich but substantially lacking exercise. You'll leave more content that you started off, for sure. If this is the last time we'll see the Firefly clan then it wasn't a bad way to go though it could of been far better. The question remains, will Zombie step up his game or will he shuffle off into obscurity and ridicule? "3 From Hell" suggests he has promise yet. 6.5/10