Recent Reviews
DVD Review: ANCHOR BAY COLLECTION - PHANTASM III
By Dave Dreher

Apr 10, 2007, 08:26

Along with their release of the original PHANTASM as a part of their Anchor Bay Collection we also on Tuesday will get an Unrated Directors cut of PHANTASM III.

It's a PHAN's dream.

PHANTASM III is one of those under rated films that a lot of fans seemed to have overlooked and it's a shame because it really is a wild ride and a very scary and inventive film. Before the main attraction Anchor Bay has included some great trailers for PHANTASM, SURVIVAL QUEST and KENNY & CO. all Coscorelli titles that are available on DVD. Presented in their original form with no enhancement they are a treat to watch.

Then it's straight on into the feature which is available here in the US for the first time on DVD. It had been years since I had screened this film and it was a joy to watch. I had actually forgotten how mean icing Scrimm was as the Tall Man in this chapter of the PHANTASM mythos and it is great to watch him creep and squint his way through the film. The Tall Man has never really achieved the horror icon status of a Freddy or Jason but he is certainly worthy of it and this film reminds us of that fact. The story line is pretty much the same as all the PHANTASM films, Reg and crew scour the countryside hunting down and attempting to kill the Tall Man and his hoard of killer dwarfs from beyond time. This time they pick up some sidekicks that add a little more humor to the mix which for me adds considerably to the enjoyment of the film but seems to annoy others. It's all a matter of opinion but all seem to agree that the FX and gore factor in this one is off the meter and lends itself to a bloody good time.

Anchor Bay has done its now expected fantastic job on the transfer and the film looks and sounds amazing. A little disappointed in the special features on this one especially since this is the third release in their Anchor Bay Collection of DVD's and the first two in the program were crammed with stuff. A commentary track and some short behind the scenes clips are all we are treated to this time. The commentary is top notch though and should definitely be listened to.

I guess we need to just be thankful that AB finally picked up the reins and gave us fans a great DVD release of this often overlooked film. It's hard to believe that it has taken this long for it to make it to DVD in the US but as seems to always be the case Anchor Bay has got the fans backs and steps up to the plate.

Phantasm III is available Tuesday April 10^th.