Some spoilers ahead for Terrifier 3.
The unfortunate truth about the Terrifier horror franchise 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 of Terrifier 3, it finds something somewhat worthwhile to say.
Those who don't enjoy the Terrifier franchise 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 be the new Paranormal 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 the Terrifier movies 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 the Terrifier franchise 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, the Terrifier movies are shockingly Christian. That might be tough to square with the violence, but anyone paying attention will discover a bizarre level of devotion to 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 Bible don't really provide the franchise with a central theme.
Do the Terrifier movies have a central theme?
Elements of the Terrifier trilogy 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.
Is Terrifier 3 doing anything new?
The Terrifier franchise takes place in a world free from light. Violence, pain, and misery seem 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 3 depicts 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 3 acknowledges the complete moral void at 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 by killing several people she loves and 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's The Passion of the Christ by way of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
There's a dash of the Bible in most stories, but Terrifier is not subtle about its influences or anything else. As it gradually fleshes out its bizarrely Christian narrative, the Terrifier franchise keeps stepping closer to a central thematic decision. Yes, Terrifier is 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.