Return of the Living Dead III (1993)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Director:

Brian Yuzna

Writer (WGA):

John Penney (written by)

Release Date:

10 August 1994 (France)

Genre:

Horror | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

She's To Die For.

Plot:

Colonel Reynolds and his group of government scientists continue their work on re-animating the dead for military use...

Plot Keywords:

Gang | Zombie | Video Game | Self Mutilation | Father Son Relationship

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Kent McCord	...	Col. John Reynolds
James T. Callahan	...	Col. Peck
Sarah Douglas	...	Lt. Col. Sinclair
Melinda Clarke	...	Julie Walker (as Mindy Clarke)
Abigail Lenz	...	Mindy
J. Trevor Edmond	...	Curt Reynolds
Jill Andre	...	Dr. Beers (Chief Scientist)
Michael Decker	...	Science technician
Billy Kane	...	Waters (Sentry)
Mike Moroff	...	Santos
Julian Scott Urena	...	Mogo (as Fabio Urena)
Pía Reyes	...	Alicia
Sal Lopez	...	Felipe
Dana Lee	...	Store owner
Michael Deak	...	Cop #1

Also Known As:

Return of the Living Dead 3 (USA) (DVD box title)
Return of the Living Dead Part III

MPAA:

Rated R for horror violence and gore, and for language and sexuality.

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Germany:18 (heavily cut) | Germany:Not Rated | New Zealand:R18 | Denmark:16 | USA:R (edited version) | USA:Unrated (uncut version) | Australia:MA | UK:18 | Mexico:C | Spain:18 | Finland:K-18

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Bandai Visual Company

Trivia:

Onscreen death count: 17.

Goofs:

Continuity: The military rank insignia on Colonel Reynolds jacket keeps disappearing/reappearing throughout the movie. Especially while he is in the control booth during the experiment at the beginning of the movie.

Quotes:

Curt Reynolds: I liked you when you were... the way you were before.

Movie Connections:

References Street Fighter II Dash: Champion Edition (1992) (VG)

More sad than funny this time around...

Curt Reynolds (J. Trevor Edmond) defies his father, Colonel John Reynolds (Kent McCord), and takes to the road with girlfriend Julie (Melinda Clarke). However, fate dictates that a tragic motorcycle accident will take Julie's life. Curt takes her body back to the lab where he has already witnessed some horrific zombie experiments that his father is supervising, intending to resurrect her. He is so blinded by his love for her that he is in complete denial that she may not be the same as before when she is brought back...

Foregoing the combination of horror and comedy in the first two "Return of the Living Dead" movies, horror veteran Brian Yuzna instead gives us a serious horror thriller with the added aspect of a tragic love story, with protagonists one can actually sympathize with, and some actual characters instead of cardboard cut-outs.

Knockout Melinda (a.k.a. Mindy) Clarke, most recently of 'The O.C.', gives a great performance, and Edmond and McCord do all right as well. Other characters aren't as well fleshed out, but Basil Wallace (whom some viewers may recognize as the villain from Steven Seagal's 1990 vehicle "Marked for Death") gets a big showcase, and when you see what he is subjected to later, you may feel bad for him as well. The cast also includes James T. Callahan, Mike Moroff, Sal Lopez, and Sarah Douglas of "Superman" and "Superman II" as the kind of cold-blooded evil lady she has always done to perfection.

The horror of the movie sort of builds as it goes along, with an intense, great climax full of hideous splatter and zombie creations. Also noteworthy is the attention paid to the look / costuming of the Julie and Riverman zombies. I also liked that scene with the store owner attacking the cop; that was an impressive looking effect as well.

It's good, intense entertainment for horror fans, made all the more so for actually being emotionally involving.

8/10