Product Details

• Format: NTSC
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Live / Artisan
• VHS Release Date: September 21, 1993
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• ASIN: B00008FBD6
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #636,950 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Some Awesome Moments But Elsewhere Falls Quite Short, November 22, 2004

By 

Stephen B. O'Blenis (Nova Scotia, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ghoulies 3 [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Now here is a movie that is going to be hard to decide whether to give four stars or five, because, in many ways, it should get a two or if one is feeling extremely generous, a 3 at the absolute most, while in other ways it cries out for not just five stars but six. The Ghoulies debuted in a 1984 self-titled movie with a fine premise and setup but which, in my opinion, missed the mark; and then moved on to a greatly improved Part 2 which was actually a horror comedy (in stark contrast to the intensity I think the first one was going for) and was actually one of the better horror-comedies to come along, towering above most of its competition in that realm during their carnival-themed adventure. This time they move on to a college campus to skitter around undetected and occasionally wreak bloody mayhem. Not a bad idea at all, but like in the first one, the mark is missed completely more often than it's hit. The creature effects are pretty good, but the Ghoulies are too inept to be taken seriosly as dangerous monsters (which is a shame because their basic look is great), meanwhile they're too unremittedly evil to be likable comedy-tinged beasties like the title characters in the "Gremlins" and "Critters" movies (despite occasional attempts to inject some charm into the little buggers). The acting, uh, leaves something to be desired (although I've cetainly seen alot of movies with far worse performances, and some of the performers here have done much better jobs in other roles); most of the characters are either unlikable, are likable but woefully undeveloped or, most often, blank slates who only come to life in certain key scenes. The story is regrettably weak, and misses alot of opportunites; a bit surprising coming from director John Carl Buechler who did such a good job on "Cellar Dweller" and "Friday The 13th Part VII". Another peeve - why does just about every college commons room in movies have to have one of those damn mounted deer-heads in the common room either in the background or the foreground? I know they're supposed to make the college look 'historical' but cripes I hate those things! They're only attractive on their original owners. Er, excuse me, I think I'm ranting again...

Anyway, now on to the good points of the movie, which make up for all the missed opportunities and unsuccessful attempts at humor. It's a safe bet that most horror movies set in co-ed colleges, whether they're going for the humor-tinged 'spooky ride' type of feel or the intense terror type of thing, are going to have at least some element of sexiness in there (especially when the movie's got a title like "Ghoulies"), and that is Ghoulies go to College"'s saving grace. I could just leave it at that, but if you need more information to decide whether to buy this (and this is definately a title I recommend for purchase, not just renting), then

WARNING: POSSIBLE SEMI-SPOILER AHEAD

in a nutshell - the consensual panty raid turned girls-on-guys wild pillowfight scene, and the scene in which Hope Marie Carlton gets in her dorm room with all the lights on and her curtains wide open and stripteases right in front of the window, are two of the most awesome, unforgettably sexy scenes in movie history. More than making the film worthwhile right there, though are a couple of other similar, briefer scenes elsewhere. If you're not comfortable with that kind of scene, there's not much to recommend the movie because these are the only parts that are especially well-done.

So how to rate the whole thing? Without the ten minutes or so taken up by the scenes mentioned above, "Ghoulies III" gets a three out of ten. The above scenes themselves receive an eleven out of ten. If only the whole movie had this level of quality, not just the 'sexy' parts, you'd have...well, five stars hands down is what I was going to say, but come to think of it "Dream Trap" done as a horror movie is basically what you'd have. So an immensely deserved four out of stars instead of a tentative five stars it is. During its best moments, "Ghoulies Go To College" is one of the sexiest movies ever. During its more numerous weak moments, it's, well, not exactly the finest example of the horror genre (or any other genre).