 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
WITCHOUSE 3: DEMON FIRE
Produced, Directed, and Edited by J.R. Bookwalter
Written by Matthew Jason Walsh and J.R. Bookwalter
Director of Photography - Danny DravenStevie - Debbie Rochon
Annie - Tanya Dempsy
Rose - Tina Krause
Lilith - Brinke Stevens"Never go out of your way to please the fans, you're setting yourself up for failure."
If director J.R. Bookwalter had asked for my opinion on WITCHOUSE 3 while prepping the film, the above statement would have been my reply. Don't give the fans what they want, give them something new!
J.R. and writer Matt Walsh really wanted to make something worthwhile. I spoke to both of them fairly frequently via e-mail as they were giving birth to this one. They listened to their fans, and critics, and wanted to make something truly frightening, an element missing from the majority of their recent efforts. This was to be the one where they apologized for movies like ZOMBIE COP and THE CRAWLING EYE.
At least their hearts were in the right place. Knowing how much they wanted this movie to work makes my job that much harder, and is the main reason this review comes so late, nearly a year after the initial release. I like both gentleman, and I truly wanted them to succeed, but I'm not in a position to feign praise.
Like the previous WITCHOUSE installment, this is a sequel in title only. The single connecting link is the premise, a witch named Lilith returns from the grave to enact a little vengeance.
In the role of Lilith this time is Brinke Stevens, who is arguably the production's best element. Instead of playing the character as a slithering seductress like Ariauna Alright previously did, Brinke brings a sort of anxious excitement, similar to like a mischievous puppy who can't wait to chase the neighbor's cat up a tree, only Lilith can't wait to devour your soul.
This time around, Lilith takes a supporting role. The leads are played by three women with varying degrees of success in the horror field, Debbie Rochon, Tina Krause, and Tanya Dempsey. To the best of my knowledge, all three roles were tailor written with all three ladies in mind, which is all the more surprising at the varying degrees of success they bring to their performance levels.
Tina Krause is given the least to do. She reacts, but rarely interacts, to the people and events around her. It's Tina's winning personality that shines through and makes the character enjoyable.
Tanya Dempsey, as Annie, is given the movie's most complex role. Annie is the catalyst for almost all the film's plot points, and like Lilith, Annie's essence, if not her appearance, is required in every scene. As a character, she is arguably Matt Walsh's most intricate creation since Butch Harlow in BLOODLETTING.
Then there's Debbie Rochon, an actress who I've been hit and miss with performance wise. For every AMERICAN NIGHTMARE, there an ALIEN AGENDA. When the woman is good, you can't touch her. When she's bad ... she's still easy on the eyes. There's something about her portrayl of her character that just feels forced and unnatural. All the energy is there, I just can't believe any of it.
But more to the point, the girls are great to look at. It's been a great long time since so much eye candy was amassed for a Tempe production. I'm sure the gals were cast due to their past association with the company, and it sure is great to see some of them in their highest profile roles to date. The exposure in a movie as mainstream as this should help their careers along nicely.
In the past, this is the part where I would lay blame on Matt Walsh for all the movie's shortcomings, but he's really blameless this time around. His story is as tight as it can be, his relationships solid, and his exposition-based dialogue is kept only to introductory scenes.
The only real blame to be placed here is on good intentions. All parties involved have done better work, and it seems like that has only been when they were trying to please themselves. They really need to stop caring what people think, and especially people like myself. When Tempe starts catering to the critics, things will really start going to pot! Just picture Brinke in any Liv Ullman role and you'll understand what I'm talking about.
Then again, maybe you should check out WITCHOUSE 3 and just see Brinke in the Lilith role.
My indifference towards the movie aside, WITCHOUSE 3 sports the nicest DVD presentation you are likely to find in a horror film. Even for the usually packed-to-the-gils Tempe Product, this one goes above and beyond the call of duty with 3 separate commentary tracks: Bookwalter and Rochon; actors Dempsey, Stevens, and Darrigo; and one with crew members Sutton, Draven, and "Spud" Scaduto. There are "home movies" taken by the cast and crew, as well as a half hour's worth of interviews. Bloopers, outtakes, stills galleries, filmographies, and trailers. The most interesting inclusion finds all the video footage Debbie Rochon's character (a documentary filmmaker) shot during the course of the movie edited together just to show viewers what she was paying attention to during filmming. Those interested in how Bookwalter got his start will find an early short film linked thematically to the WITCHOUSE series.