Customer Reviews

Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I loved this movie. I have only seen the original Phantasm and part 3, but I really liked part 3. The scene where those people go into the kid's house and get killed..well, I wont give it away, but I thought it was pretty scary. Phantasm 3 is a good horror film. I enjoyed it.

I know there's some concern regarding whether this region 1 DVD release is the unrated version as the packaging indicates or the VHS R-rated reissue. I watched both the DVD and VHS versions simultaneously last night as picture-in-picture and there is definitely one noticably extended scene. When Reggie enters the mausoleum and is captured by Rocky and Tanesha, the sentinel punctures into Tanesha's forehead. You now see much more blood pouring out of the sentinel, more screaming and a larger puddle of blood on the floor. This scene runs at least 10-15 seconds longer compared to the R rated version. It's funny to see in the R rated version, no blood is seen pouring out of the sentinel. Other than that, I found no other differences between versions. I know 10-15 seconds doesn't sound like much, but being the sentinel scenes are the standout scenes in these films, they're always the ones that get trimmed. I think those extra seconds make a difference and it's worth the purchase. The DVD looks and sounds great.

I think this movie was okay,but doesn't have that scary feeling that Phantasm 1,and 2 has.But it was still cool!

Picking up where part 2 left off,Reggie(Reggie Bannister)is alive and the hurst crashes killing Liz(Paula Irvine),Mike(Michael Baldwin) is taken to a hospital for treatment.After Mike gets out the hospital,Reggie and Mike go look for the TALL MAN(on cover-Angus Scrimm)and his flying killer spheres.But on the way we meet Jody(Bill Thornbury)Mike's dead brother who is undead and can turn into a flying sphere.After Mike gets"captured" by the TALL MAN,Reggie meets a young kid in a ghost town,Tim(Kevin Conners)joins Reggie on his quest to rescue Mike and kill the evil TALL MAN for good.The two of them meet up with a former Military soilder,Rocky(Gloria Lynne Henry)who knows how to kick butt good.Now the three brave ones go against the evil TALL MAN and his army of the undead in this film directed by Don Concarelli(Beast Master,Phantasm 1,2,and 4).

I think the price of this movie is not worth it....

This awesome DVD edition of PHANTASM III has an amazing looking anamorphic transfer, incredible new Dolby 5.1 soundtrack and a healthy does of fascinating bonus material. The picture quality is a huge improvment over the VHS and LaserDisc versions and the new sound mix is truly a monster. Included is a very fun commentary track from Michael Baldwin and Angus Scrimm. There is also some fascinating behind the scenes footage where we get to see the making of the film. There is a short deleted scene included as well as trailers for the first and third films. Anchor Bay choose to use the gorgeous European poster art for the cover of this release and they include a copy of it inside the case with the chapter titles printed on the reverse. This artwork is a huge improvement over the official domestic release art. My only complaint about this release is that the opening title has somehow been tampered with. On previous versions after the words PHANTASM III appear, the subtitle of the film, LORD OF THE DEAD emerges on screen under the main title. This never happens on this release. It's a very minor complaint but I do wonder what happened there. This isn't my favorite film of the series but it is still an excellent movie and this DVD release does it justice. It took a long time to get released but it was worth the wait. Thanks to Anchor Bay.

After listening to Don interview for amazon(click on it above) I agree this is better than the origial version which was cut down by the mpaa to get the R rating. These are the type of movies you can watch over and over again because there are so mucn in them...My Fav is #4 followed by #1 but all of them are great. The transfer is first rate as well as the sound....you cannot go wrong on this one...

Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead, the second sequel to Don Coscarelli's original, cerebral horror flick, picks up right where the second film left off. Reggie (Reggie Bannister) and Mike (A. Michael Baldwin) are still on the run from the seemingly indestructible Tall Man (Angus Scrimm) who is in the process of devestating small towns across the mid-west. In the meantime, he has plans for Mike, which leads Reggie across the country on a rescue mission along with some unlikely allies. Mike's older brother Jody (Bill Thornbury) returns as well, in an unexpected form, to lend a hand too. Like the above Amazon review states, Phantasm III leaves little to the imagination in terms of gore effects, and the story is nowhere near as cerebral as the original Phantasm, but Phantasm III is still a more than solid sequel in Coscarelli's series. The overall story becomes expanded and Coscarelli does a great job tying things together using footage from the original film, and despite some plot holes, just about everything works here. All in all, Phantasm III is a fine and underrated sequel, and once again, thanks to Anchor Bay, such a film gets an equally fine DVD release featuring commentary, behind the scenes, and trailers.

I love the phantasm film series this is no exception The Tall Man is back and as returned to kill Liz and Reggie and to capture Mike (Reg lives!!!) and the fourbarelled shotgun returns somehow from Phantasm 2,but remember "We must never trust what we see" A.Michale Baldwin reprises his role as Mike and is soon captured by The Tall Man Bill Thornbury Returns as Jody who can transform into sphere and helps Reg find Mike. Reg's partners up with a young boy named Tim who is a homelone type assin and a former army chick named Rockey,who can kick some serious zombie [rear], are planning to save Mike and stop The Tall Man. laugh and scream in this action packed third installment to Phantasm

If you are a Phan of the the four films you may or may not likethis installment! Why does P3 lack what 1 & 2 have? Well to putit bluntly, I thought Phantasm, being the best, would be hard anyway to top and P2 seemed more polished "Hollywood".

P3 gives great character development. Reggie, well he is who we have come to love. He is the hero of this entire series.

I enjoy how they mesh the opening with the past two episodes. It truly deserves alot more respect than people have given it. Atleast Don C. has kept true to what he believes this films should be told. Even though most of the critics have and continue to pan it!

If you truly are a Phan you will love it. Otherwise, you won't quite understand what's going on. After all, wasn't this all a dream or was it? Good Flick but for $$$$, pray for a quick reissue!!!

The movie is great for horror movie fans. It was a suprise to me that it's not popular in movie stores, I can't find it anywhere! Anyways even if your not a horror movie fan the movie is worth seeing. I personally never heard of Phantasm until I seen the video at a store. Ever since then I have been hooked on the whole series. The Tall Man was a suprise to see, he's like a Frankenstein and zombie look alike. So if you have'nt stoped reading my reveiw I would give this movie a chance if I were you. The cover may not look interesting, But I swear to you that you can look forward to a couple of suprises. Never underestimate the power of cult classics and the Tall Man. I give this movie ****1/2

Good enough sequel (better at least than #2)to evoke a few jolts and giggles with the "anything goes" scenario not seen since the still superior original.
The movie kicks off in high gear with the typical Phantasm prequel recap. Director Coscarelli once again does an amazing job interjecting Phantasm 2 scenes seamlessly, and replacing shots of James Le Gros with original cast member A. Michael Baldwin so in fact he and Reggie Bannister share the same screen space while performing in two separate movies. Moreover the production team does a more than adequate job considering the low budget(under a million $)with fine cinematography and compelling special effects.
However "Lord of the Dead" has more to offer besides explosions and gore. Somewhere beneath this blanket of eye candy is an engaging story . The film dispenses with reality from the get go with The Tall Man emerging from the infamous dimensional forks to discard of his mangled remains (from #2) with Mike uttering the words "...nothing is what it seems." And that just about sums it up. It could be a dream within a dream or not a dream at all. Now this seems to bother the folks who were in love with the mediocre sequel and so to them all I can say is, well... there is the quad-barrel shotgun.