The truth about Sarah Fier is revealed, leading Deena and her friends
to make one final stand against the evil that's plaguing Shadyside. HORROR
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Fear Street Part Three: 1666 (2021)Directed by Leigh Janiak
Written by Phil Graziadei, Leigh Janiak, Kate Trefy Starring Kiana Madeira, Ashley Zukerman, Gillian Jacobs, Benjamin Flores Jr., Olivia Scott Welch, Darrell Britt-Gibson Sequel to 2021's Fear Street Part Two: 1978 Based on the book series by R.L. Stine |
After two disappointingly bland entries that drew far too much inspiration from better movies, I didn't have very high hopes for the conclusion to the Fear Street trilogy. But they really stuck the landing, delivering an original, creative ending that's half 17th century witch hunt and half 1994 conclusion to the overarching story. We get to see who Sarah Fier really was and how her death led to the overall curse of Shadyside. In truth, she was framed, and the identity of the real culprit is quite a satisfying shock.
At the end of Part Two, Deena (Madeira) seemingly gets transported back to 1666 in the body of Sarah Fier. This film reveals that Deena is more of a passenger in Sarah's body, watching the events that led to her death. I liked this approach, because the last thing this franchise needed was bloody time travel. Turns out Sarah was betrayed by her best friend, Solomon Goode (Zukerman), who sold his soul to the devil in exchange for his family's prosperity. With her last breath, Sarah swears vengeance on the entire Goode family, leading all the way to our seemingly kindhearted town sheriff Nick Goode (also Zukerman). Turns out Nick is our overarching villain, the latest in the Goode family to sell his soul to Satan. The second half is Deena and her friends taking on the sheriff and his ghoulish cronies at the Shadyside Mall. Finally, something positive and exciting to say about this franchise. Overall, I don't see myself going back to this franchise anytime soon, if ever. The first two entries just aren't worth it, even if this third installment finally worked. There's definitely a neat trilogy buried underneath a lot of unnecessary backstory, jump scares, and overly long films. Seriously, all of these could've been trimmed by a half hour and the second film could've been omitted entirely. Still, having said that, the third film is easily the best and wraps everything up quite nicely. |
Here we are with the conclusion to the epic three-week horror event, Fear Street. After a rather lukewarm second installment where the overall story didn’t truly progress, I was a little skeptical going into this third installment. It was taking us even further back in time and still promising to wrap up the overall storyline which has been ongoing for the past three weeks. So, the question was, would they stick the landing? Well, thanks to a pretty engaging first half which provides all of the answers and a surprise second half which does conclude everything, I walked away relatively impressed. And, based off the twist ending, I genuinely hope to see more of this part of R.L. Stine’s terrifying imagination on screen.
In regard to the first half, again, it does a pretty darn good job of delving into the town’s backstory and the infamous curse. It’s engaging and delivers a twist which I genuinely didn’t see coming. I also really liked how they utilized the cast from previous installments to play various characters here, creating a nice sense of continuity for the fans who have been tuning in every week. Halfway through, the film pulls off another surprise by returning to the 1994 storyline and finally moving ahead with the conclusion. As someone who found the debut to be a lot of fun, it was nice to spend a significant amount time back in it. Especially since I got the pretty cool scene where the various murderers start to brutally fight each other since their covered in the blood they use to hunt someone. Finally, you’re probably wondering if this is truly a Stine adaptation and features a twist ending. The answer is yes and stay tuned for a mid-credits scene. While I was initially concerned after being not too into the second installment, I’m pleased to say this conclusion does stick the landing. Both halves of the film are equally engaging in their own right. And the film continues to show its love for the author who wrote the books this is based on by featuring a twist ending. One which teases more spooky adventures to come. I should hope to have the chance to visit Shadyside and its residents again. |