Degradation on the face The fate of the horror franchise "Boogeyman" is not easy. The first film of the series, shot with the support of Sam Raimi, performed quite well at the box office, but this was not enough to ensure that subsequent parts received proper funding and continued to be released on the big screens. “Boogeyman 2” was released straight on video and at first disappointed most fans of the series, but over time, it still found positive moments and the film turned into a popular entertainment for the evening among fans to tickle their nerves. In principle, the story of the franchise could safely end in the second part, but filmmakers have a habit of turning dilogies into trilogies, and Boogieman was no exception. The premiere of the third part of the series took place in 2008 and, like Boogieman 2, it was sent to explore the boundless expanses of the universe of video films. Traditionally, the director has changed again. Stephen T. Kay and Jeff Betancourt were replaced by Gary Jones, best known to fans of the series, as one of the authors of the once popular "Xena - Princess of Warriors." Sam Raimi was not actively involved in the film. Well, one of the authors of the idea of Boogieman 3 was none other than Eric Kripke, the creator of the mystical drama Supernatural. Kripke personally built a real cult, but he was clearly cramped in the framework of television production and he decided to try himself in the field of full-length cinema. Considering that the post of director he still take under himself too early, Kripke limited himself to writing the plot "Boogeyman 3" and, as well as on the set of the first part of the franchise, acted as a producer. Fans of the monster from the dark with considerable excitement waited for when the film will finally be available for purchase, but to repeat the journey of the second film, not to mention the first, “Boogeyman 3” failed. Yes, it became relatively tolerant among its longtime audience, but its creators simply had nothing to tell us. So the presented film can be seen or overlooked, because the new ideas bypassed the triquel side.
So, this time the plot of the film takes place in a student town. The main character is young Sarah Morris (Erin Cahill) - an excellent student and just a beauty. In addition to studying and relationships with her boyfriend, the girl also works at a local radio station, leading a specialized program with a licensed psychologist aimed at solving the problems of confused students. And it seems that everything in Sarah’s life was wonderful, but in an instant her carefree smile was wiped off the face by her longtime friend Audrey (Nicky Sanderson), whose father, the head physician of the psychiatric clinic (Tobin Bell) not so long ago died in his own institution at the hands of a mysterious killer. Audrey believes that he was the victim of a terrible Boogieman, a monster from the dark, and now he is supposed to come to her soul. It is quite natural that Sarah does not believe in children's fairy tales and believes that her friend simply accepted the death of her father much more painful than it would be worth. Deciding to leave Audrey in her room for the night, the heroine did not even know what nightmares she let on campus. Audrey's unstoppable fear of the Boogiemen eventually materializes him on campus and he still gets to his terrified victim. But this is not the worst... What's more tragic is that Sarah saw who was after her friend and now she believes in Boogeyman and spreads that fear among students! The boogeyman grows stronger day by day and continues to perform his bloody deeds, since no one can stop the incarnation of the underworld ...
If there was no connection between the first and second "Boogeyman" other than the common name, then there is a certain continuity between the second and third, which results in the image of Audrey, the daughter of a psychiatrist, one of the main characters of the sequel. However, a particularly strong connection can not be called, since the monster of the last series was a maniac dressed in the image of Boogeyman because of a long-standing mental disorder. Now the monster of urban legends has reappeared before us as a mystical evil, passing through walls and opening a portal to other worlds. In principle, shifting the emphasis from the mad man to the real killer from the underworld looks quite acceptable. At least there was at least one element of surprise in the plot and it looks quite original, because infrequently the creators of a particular franchise can decide to radically change the image of their main villain. However, all the pluses of the production end, and yet the rest is a gray, faceless mass in which a simple youth slasher, primitive student humor and trivial detective investigation are mixed, upsetting any fan of Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle. Director Gary Jones personally ruined all the achievements that his predecessors made. He felt he had been commissioned to make another B movie, so he wasn’t going to try hard, doing his job with some annoying detachment. Absolutely all frightening moments can be calculated long before they get into the frame, so do not count on the fact that while watching you will be able to tickle your nerves. The development of characters treads on one place and highlight something special will not work. At the most critical moments, the director uses cheap, absolutely impressive special effects designed to saturate the visual range with a frightening supernatural riot, but in fact annoying with their helplessness.
The worst thing about this movie is the characters. Especially if you compare them to the heroes of Boogeyman 2. If earlier we had no problems distinguishing minor heroes in whole parties and all of them were quite independent personalities with bright individual characteristics, now no one can boast of their zest. I don’t argue with the fact that it is much easier to show wonderful characters in a psychiatric clinic, but still for professionals in their field this should not be a problem. The only ones who somehow stand out against the background of the gray mass of the characters are two students - a hookah lover and his roommate, a musician. That’s all, no one else can be noticed... And notice, the main character I decided to ignore, as to tell about her something interesting will not work.
In the end, I want to say that Boogieman 3 was not as disappointing as it might seem, but only because you don’t expect anything special from it. The tape is unable to frighten its viewer and does not even try to intrigue anything. This is an ordinary craft, of which thousands come out every year and you should not dwell on it in more detail.
4 out of 10