The Top Ten Part Threes In Horror History | From Chucky to Stonehenge

[00:00:00]I know that there are a lot of people that immediately recoil when they hear the word sequel, but it's not always a bad thing. And today, I want to talk to you guys about some of the best part threes in horror movie history.

[00:00:14]>> We stopped at a light.

[00:00:15]And saw him walking in that field behind the Lost River Drive-In.

[00:00:20]Julie said he was so creepy.

[00:00:23]>> [music] [music] >> Hey, what's up everybody? It's Nick here, and today I want to give you guys my top 10 part threes in horror. Now, that is quite a tall task because I'm a big fan of horror movies, and I'm somebody that actually really loves when we get sequels. And there's a lot of great sequels. There's also a lot of great part threes. In compiling this list, I was honestly feeling ashamed of myself for leaving some off. Now, honestly, it even got me thinking like maybe I need to do a top 10 horror trilogies video. So, you guys let me know down in the comments section below if you want to see that, and I'd love to do it. Now, before I get into my honorable mentions and then eventually my list, I just want to say to all of you guys that took the time to reach out to me over the last couple days, I very much appreciate your kind words.

[00:01:27]My cat Zeke was my best friend for 15 years. Uh he was my shadow. He followed me everywhere. He slept in my bed every night. He was my dude. And uh it's been really, really difficult.

[00:01:40]And I've been trying to distract myself and also have some sense of normalcy while also allowing myself to feel the things I need to feel and to grieve. And if you're an animal person, you guys know how it is. It can be really, really hard. So, I just want to thank all of you guys for the kind words, and just know that he was loved, and uh he's still loved, and um I just I really appreciate you. So, beginning with my honorable mentions, the first one is Alien 3. Now, you could be talking about the theatrical edition or the assembly cut, though I prefer the assembly cut myself. I know that this movie is controversial. Though, I do know that most people say, "You know what? The assembly cut's a lot better. Why couldn't we have seen that version from the get-go?" There's a lot of issues with Alien 3, and mainly it's Hicks and Newt and what they do to those characters and how I feel like Alien 3 just completely pulls the rug out from under you after Aliens. That being the case, this is actually a really dour, depressing, and dark film, and I actually kind of like that. It's also kind of claustrophobic and just feels more to its horror roots, while Aliens was more of a sci-fi action film. Now, I'll never make the case that Alien 3 is better than Aliens, but I will say I think it is under appreciated. The next honorable mention is going to be Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth. I've talked on my channel over the years how much I love Hellraiser. This isn't a surprise to you guys. Hellraiser 3 has some warts, particularly with the acting.

[00:03:07]However, there's some genuinely top-tier Hellraiser stuff in this, and I think most of the third act of this movie is absolute aces. I also really like that they tried to deepen the lore and the mythology here. Not all of it lands, but a lot of it does, and if nothing else, I think the movie is just heavy metal. And the last honorable mention is going to be Terrifier 3. Now, I know this is the consensus favorite of the Terrifier franchise, and I think that's because it was the most mass marketable, the most easily palatable of all the Terrifier films. That's not to say that it's like totally commercialized and sanitized.

[00:03:44]No, it's an absolutely grotesque film.

[00:03:46]But, Terrifier 2 and Terrifier are different levels, I think. Once Terrifier 2 broke out, I think they kind of toned some things back with Terrifier 3. And that's why I prefer 2, because 2 feels much more like a grindhouse old-school throwback video nasty.

[00:04:04]Whereas Terrifier 3 definitely feels a little more Hollywood, though it still maintains a lot of the spirit. And Terrifier 3 is great. I mean, let's be real. This is a super fun movie. We don't get enough Christmas horror films, so every time we get a new one, I'm over the moon about it. Maybe that plays into why I like it so much, but damn it, Terrifier 3 is awesome. So, starting this list off at number 10 is going to be Leprechaun 3. And if you guys don't know this already, I should probably tell you. I've got quite a soft spot for the Leprechaun franchise, specifically the first three and Leprechaun in the Hood. But Leprechaun 3, I think is unequivocally the greatest film in this franchise. Now, look, that comes with some qualifiers here. You have to understand that it is a Leprechaun horror film. If you go into it with that mindset, not expecting something that's going to scare you or truly stick with you, I think you're going to have a good time. Leprechaun 3 takes the Lep to Las Vegas, okay? Like it fully knew how ridiculous the premise was from the get-go and it said, "Let's just get wild with it." And Leprechaun 3 is wild. It's fun, it's got some good kills, some actually great practical effects, and I don't know if Warwick Davis has been better than he was in this movie. Next up in ninth place is going to be Paranormal Activity 3. And I know that this franchise is not for everybody, and on the whole, it's really not for me, either. I really enjoyed the first three movies and I have a soft spot for The Marked Ones, and everything else I could do without. However, Paranormal Activity 3, I think is the pinnacle of the franchise. And it's because it takes everything from the first and second movie and brings it all together. The climax of this movie, the first time I watched it, I was on the edge of my seat. Not only did we have paranormal horrors going on, we had real-life horrors going on as well. It answers all of the questions you had up to this point. It brings closure to pretty much every plot line, and it really feels like they could have just ended it here, and I think this would have been an incredibly strong franchise. Now again, found footage being what it is, it's just not going to be for everyone. So some of you guys are going to listen to this and be like, "Absolutely not. No way. I can't do it."

[00:06:16]But I implore you to give this movie a chance if you haven't already, or if you haven't in a really long time. Because I think you'll find that while found footage can be disorienting and sometimes ineffective, I think Paranormal Activity 3 is one of the greatest examples of it working really well. Next up in eighth place is going to be Child's Play 3. And you guys see this in all my videos, so you know I'm a big Child's Play 3 fan, and really just a big Chucky fan in general. Now look, I'll be the first to admit to you, I don't think that I could ever make the case this is the best in the franchise.

[00:06:48]I think that Child's Play and Child's Play 2 are one of the greatest one-two punches in horror. But Child's Play 3, for years and years, has been buried amongst some of the crappier sequels in the series, and I genuinely don't understand it. This movie is awesome. I love the fact that we got to see a more grown-up Andy in a totally different setting at this military school. It brought us a different side to this character, a bunch of different side characters, and it created a playground of absolutely insane possibilities.

[00:07:22]The entire Wargames sequence, I remember the first time I saw that, I was like, "There is no way this is actually happening right now." But it happened, and it's awesome still to this day. Now this is definitely when Chucky started to get more into his one-liner and jokey phase, but it largely works. There's super memorable kills here, and aside from a really forced plot line of having another child find the doll and Chucky wants to transfer his soul into him. I think everything else about this movie works. And I have never understood why it has never gotten the love that I feel like is so obviously deserved. I mean, the movie's a freaking blast. Next up in seventh place is going to be Army of Darkness. And for a lot of people, this is their favorite Evil Dead film. And I honestly really can't argue with people that feel that way. Because while it's not my favorite Evil Dead film, I love it and I understand why most people love it, too. This is just a different Evil Dead movie. Most of the Evil Dead films have dark humor, have moments of slapstick in them. Army of Darkness was like, what if that was just the entire movie? We're going to take this out of a cabin in the woods and we are just going to go to like the medieval times. And we're going to have Ash fighting a demon army. Like, that's freaking awesome. But it's also ridiculous. So when you pitch that idea, you have to know, okay, we just need to go full bore with the insanity here. And they do. There is slapstick galore.

[00:08:48]Bruce Campbell is at his best in this entire franchise. There are insanely memorable one-liners, fight sequences, kills, final bosses. Army of Darkness is one of those movies that when you look at this franchise as a whole, you are genuinely shocked that this ever happened. You can see how maybe Evil Dead 2 would come about or Ash vs. Evil Dead for that matter. But Army of Darkness is just like this weird unicorn. But it works. Now, my sixth place pick might get me a little bit of hate, but this is my list, dammit. And that is Scream 3.

[00:09:27]I love this movie. I just do. You know, I I've talked about this on my channel before and I think the best way to describe this for people that may struggle to understand why I love it is I grew up on Scooby-Doo. I watched reruns of Scooby-Doo and the new seasons of Scooby-Doo all the time. It was one of my favorite shows, one of my favorite Saturday morning cartoons. Scream 3 is quite literally an R-rated adult Scooby-Doo. That is what this movie is.

[00:09:54]And as the years have gone on, I have just embraced that more and more. And I've actually found myself pulling away from Scream 2 some because while Scream 2 is a great sequel, I'll never claim it's not. For the longest time it was my favorite Scream movie. I can't help but look at it and go, "You are exactly what the first movie was though. You're aping all of that."

[00:10:15]Where Scream 3 was like, "Let's switch it up. Let's go to Hollywood. Let's make this comedic. Let's have like visions and ghost moms." This movie was so tongue-in-cheek and so meta that I honestly think it turned a lot of people off and still does to this day. But not me. I mean, this is just fun. Pure fun.

[00:10:36]I feel like everybody here is game. I also think it's the best Sidney Prescott period. Like, Neve should have been in the movie more. I understand why she wasn't. But once you get her, I don't think I've ever seen Sidney Prescott be more badass in my opinion. I just love Scream 3. Okay? I understand it's not everybody's favorite and that's fine.

[00:10:53]But damn it, ghost mom is enough for me.

[00:10:56]Next up in fifth place is going to be Friday the 13th Part 3D.

[00:11:01]Yes, my favorite Friday the 13th film.

[00:11:05]Now, for some people this is a movie they love because they're like, "Well, you have to. It's when Jason really came into his own. He got his hockey mask and this is when we really got to see him for who he would become."

[00:11:16]Yeah, sure. I get that. But I just think there's a lot of great [ __ ] in Friday the 13th Part 3. Like, I love this movie. I think it's got the best final girl in the franchise in Chris in my opinion. I think it's got some of the best side characters in the series. I think it unequivocally has some of the best kills in the series. I think it's got one of the best Jasons in the series, which apparently is a hot take.

[00:11:38]Like a lot of people think the portrayal of Jason in this movie by Richard Brooker is like a statue, and I don't get that. I feel like he has a lot of personality, and he's freaking menacing.

[00:11:49]This third act is genuinely scary. Jason on the window of that barn is scary. I'm still scared of that.

[00:11:57]But honestly, it's just so 80s. Like so quintessential 80s.

[00:12:04]Fun characters, great kills, great villain, great setting, great music.

[00:12:10]What is there not to like about part three? Aside from, you know, the 3D gimmicks. Next up at number four is going to be Saw III. And I am well aware that Saw is not a franchise for everybody, and nor will I ever try to tell you you need to see the brilliance of the Saw movies. Look, I think they're brilliant, most of them at least, but that's just me. However, I think most people can agree that Saw III is genuinely a great film and transcends what you would expect from a Saw film.

[00:12:42]This has the best central game in the entire series. I remember the shock I had the first time I watched this when it was revealed at the end that this was never about Jeff.

[00:12:51]The movie was all about Jeff, but in reality, he was a pawn in somebody else's game, and that was like a total mind-blown moment for me. I think it has the greatest emotional core, this and Saw X, easily.

[00:13:05]I also think that this will really make you feel things and ask questions about what you would do in this situation.

[00:13:13]Would you be able to forgive and forget?

[00:13:15]Would you be able to try to save the lives of those that were responsible for the death of your child? Like, that's some really heavy stuff. Everybody always wants to look at Saw as just this torture, gore fest that is nothing but traps and blood. But I just can't get behind you there. Saw 3 is a perfect example that this series has a lot more to say than that, and more people need to open their eyes and ears and appreciate it. All right, so top three, and a lot of you guys probably know what the movies are going to be, you just don't know the order. And a number three is going to be A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. Now, a lot of people would probably put this as their number one part three of all time. And look, I would not argue with you there. This is unequivocally one of the greatest part threes ever made, like of any genre.

[00:14:03]This was the movie that put A Nightmare on Elm Street and Freddy Krueger truly on the map, where he broke out and became a massive star. This is the movie that is largely responsible for New Line Cinema being what it is today. I mean, it is the house Freddy built, and it's because of Dream Warriors and The Dream Master.

[00:14:20]Dream Warriors is everything about part one and part two that were great put together with an added fantastical flair that truly makes it feel like it's finally figuring itself out. It's figuring out its premise and how they can stretch these dreams in this dream world into such creative kills and sequences, and also the character of Freddy Krueger. Yeah, he's cracking some jokes here, but they work. They're some of his most iconic lines in the entire franchise. Dream Warriors unequivocally has one of the greatest cast in the series, one of the greatest Freddys in the series, some of the greatest kills in the series, some of the most iconic kills in horror, quite frankly, one of the greatest soundtracks in the series.

[00:15:06]I mean, dude, like Dream Warriors is exactly what it's always been cracked up to be. It's that good and then some.

[00:15:13]Now, at number two, I am going with my head and not my heart, and that is Halloween 3: Season of the Witch. And for some of you guys, seeing this this high is just infuriating you.

[00:15:25]But you need to understand something here. Most people nowadays agree that Halloween 3 kind of rules. Like most people don't argue with that anymore. It took a while for us to get there, sure, but we're evolving as a society.

[00:15:38]Halloween 3 was a movie that before I watched it for the first time, I knew what to expect. I was told Michael Myers wasn't in it. So I went in with an open mind. And what I came out with was holy crap, that was a really fun, genuinely at times freaky, but honestly massively campy and over-the-top sci-fi horror film. You've got a great lead in Tom Atkins. I mean, he literally ruled like a decade there, and Halloween 3 is one of those roles that he's always going to be remembered for. You have an incredible villain in Conal Cochran. You have an absolutely insane plot. Like a plot that when you think about it, you're like, "Yo, this guy was dead ass about to just try to like murder every child." You've got super fun, cheesy kills, some incredibly memorable moments, a fantastic score, a great setting, and there's just something about it being the Halloween movie that has no business being in this franchise at all.

[00:16:36]It's like a place in time, you know?

[00:16:38]It's a It's a relic. It's a part of history. What could have been for the franchise.

[00:16:44]And all that being said, it's one of the best movies in that franchise, and it doesn't even feature the title villain.

[00:16:51]I don't know, man. I you know, there's a lot of people that still don't like Halloween 3, and I guess more power to you, but I'm not one of them. This movie freaking rules. And at number one, using my head and not my heart, even though it has my heart as well, I think the greatest part three in horror history is The Exorcist 3. Genuinely. I I don't know how I could put a part three above this, just in terms of quality.

[00:17:16]I remember seeing The Heretic, and I was so disappointed. I thought that movie was just a bore. It made no sense. It didn't feel at all a piece of The Exorcist.

[00:17:26]And when I got to The Exorcist III, I was like, "Oh, great.

[00:17:30]Well, I guess it can't be any worse."

[00:17:32]Not only was it not any worse, it's genuinely fantastic. A very, very different film than The Exorcist, and it works, and it effectively stands on its own for 90% of this movie being this like crime mystery thriller that you are following along throughout the entire runtime asking so many questions. You're asking, "Is this possible? Could it be this person? Who's responsible for this?

[00:17:55]Who did this? Why did this happen?" It keeps you engaged. And then when you get to the climax and it directly ties into The Exorcist, specifically the end of The Exorcist, it still works. It's able to walk that tightrope perfectly, where it can be its own thing, and it can also be a direct sequel to The Exorcist.

[00:18:14]And I'm sorry, but following The Heretic, The Exorcist III had no business being this good. Nobody expected this movie to be anything other than a waste of time. Not only is this not a waste of time, in my opinion, this is the greatest part three in horror history. All right, so there you have it. There is my top 10 part threes in horror.

[00:18:38]Now, the question belongs to you guys.

[00:18:41]What do you think of my list? Do you agree or do you disagree? What are some part threes that I missed that you would absolutely put on your list? Whatever your thoughts, please sound off down below in the comments section. I want to thank you guys so much for watching and ask that you please leave a like on this video. Subscribe to the channel if you haven't already. This is Nick of the Lost River Drive-In, and I'm pulling out.