10 Best Number 3s In Horror Movie History
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00:00Horror often gets criticised for having too many sequels, and that is not an unfair criticism,
00:05but a third go-around is not always a death sentence in the genre. Some of the films carried
00:09on the momentum of the ones before it, some of them bounce back from awful second instalments,
00:14and some aren't as good as the movies that preceded them, but are still good films that
00:19should not be overlooked. So with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with WhatCulture here with the
00:23best number threes in horror movie history. Number 10. The Conjuring 2
00:30Hold your horses, we can explain. Despite its misleading name, The Conjuring 2 is actually
00:36the third instalment in the franchise. After the initial Conjuring film, a spin-off was released
00:42called Annabelle, which was about the evil doll featured in the first film. The first proper
00:46Conjuring sequel arrived in 2016 and told a fictionalised version of the Enfield Poltergeist
00:53story, in which a ghost haunted a family living in a London council estate. A third film bearing
00:58The Conjuring name was released in 2021, but that isn't as good, so we're going to ignore it.
01:03The Conjuring 2 made just as much money and scored just as highly among the critics as the original.
01:08Fans were impressed that the sequel kept up the suspense and terror of the first without ever
01:13getting gimmicky or over the top. On the whole, The Conjuring 2 is a solid horror sequel that builds
01:18on the foundations of what came before it. It would be a lot higher on this list, but considering
01:22we've pushed our luck by even including it in the first place, 10th place will have to do.
01:27Number 9, Puppet Master 3, Toulon's Revenge. The Puppet Master films are quite hard to come
01:34by, considering they were all released straight to DVD. Those that have seen them will know that
01:38they're about a group of puppets brought to life by an ancient Egyptian spell. They will also know
01:43that there are loads of these films. Of the 15 Puppet Master films, which is hilarious when you
01:48consider that the fifth one was called The Final Chapter. One of the best is the third one,
01:53subtitled Toulon's Revenge. The Toulon in the title is André Toulon, a puppeteer living in Berlin during
01:59World War II. After his wife is killed for her involvement in his Nazi-bashing puppet show,
02:04Toulon uses his magically animated marionettes to seek revenge on the Third Reich. Whilst that might
02:09sound like the ravings of a madman, Toulon's Revenge is a lot of fun with a lot of interesting
02:14characters. Who doesn't love murderous puppets? Well, maybe the child's play legal team. Puppet
02:19Master 3 is a great instalment in a franchise that is still going strong to this day. It's
02:24definitely worth a watch, if you can somehow get your hands on a copy.
02:27Number 8. Insidious Chapter 3
02:30Insidious, which came out in 2010, tells that classic horror story of a couple trying to save
02:36their child from demonic possession. Critics praised the film's suspenseful atmosphere and strong use of
02:41conventions, but were less than complimentary about its second half. Still, it did well enough to get
02:46a sequel, and for that sequel to get a sequel, which hit cinemas in 2015. Directed by Leigh Whannell,
02:52who wrote the first two Insidious films, and the first three Saw movies, Insidious Chapter 3 is set
02:58before the events of the first two films, and features a young girl who becomes possessed while
03:02trying to contact the spirit of her dead mother. Critics loved the darkness of Chapter 3, and we're not
03:07talking about the lighting design. It's the creepiest Insidious film of the first three,
03:12which is really saying something, and it was also praised for its concentration on grief as a central
03:16theme. With a new Insidious film set to premiere in 2023, now is a great time to re-watch all of
03:22the previous films to catch up, but if you do that, then you're in for a treat when you reach number
03:27three. Number 7. Halloween 3 Season of the Witch
03:31A controversial pick, to say the least, the third film in the Halloween franchise is the first and
03:37only not to feature signature antagonist Michael Myers. Instead, the main villain of this movie
03:42is a plastic jack-o'-lantern mask. Uh, really? Season of the Witch was a risky move for the
03:47franchise, and one that ultimately didn't pay off, as Myers was back for the next film.
03:52However, just because it wasn't a commercial success, that doesn't mean we shouldn't applaud
03:56Season of the Witch for trying something new. So many horror franchises find themselves
04:00stuck in a holding pattern, especially when it comes to their villains. How many monsters and
04:05murderers have we seen watered down through years of overexposure? Michael Myers was able to take
04:09seven years, meaning that, when he made his return to cinema, he was exciting and fresh again.
04:15Anyway, Season of the Witch isn't as bad as people say it is. Sure, the plot sounds goofy on paper,
04:20but in reality, it's actually quite chilling and really well told. This was also the last Halloween
04:26film to involve original director John Carpenter for 36 years, which gives it enough pedigree to
04:31be worth checking out. Number 6, The Exorcist 3. Now, the fact that there's one sequel to The
04:38Exorcist, let alone multiple, is for one to the better word, sacrilegious. However, this 1990 release
04:44isn't as bad as you'd think. For starters, it brings original Exorcist writer William Peter Blatty back
04:50into the fold as scriptwriter and director. Secondly, it completely ignores the events of
04:55The Exorcist 2 The Heretic, which is a good thing because that is widely considered one of the worst
04:59films ever made. The Exorcist 3 is based on Legion, the third book in the Exorcist novel series,
05:05also written by Blatty. It follows Lieutenant William Kinderman, who fans of the original film
05:10will remember as the detective who investigates the murders caused by a possessed Reagan. This time,
05:15Kinderman is on the trail of the Gemini Killer, a serial murderer who had been executed
05:2015 years earlier. Whilst it's not up to the level of the first Exorcist film, the third instalment
05:25in the franchise still offers some great scares and continues the stories of many of the characters
05:30from the original film. Don't count this film out based on what it's not. See it first,
05:35then make up your mind. Number 5, Hellraiser 3. Hell on Earth.
05:40Everyone's favourite Cenobite, Pinhead, returns once more in this 1992 flick. Now imprisoned in a stone
05:47pillar, Pinhead manipulates an arrogant nightclub owner into setting him free, whilst a plucky
05:52rapport attempts to stop him. Hell on Earth does a great job in building on the character of Pinhead,
05:56particularly after the revelation in Hellraiser 2 that he used to be human. Pinhead's human form,
06:02World War I soldier Captain Elliot Spencer, contacts protagonist Joey's summer skill throughout the
06:07movie, using his insight into the demon to help her defeat him. As well as some strong character
06:11development, Hellraiser 3 is all chock full of blood, guts and gore. Pinhead's trademark hooked
06:17chains make mincemeat out of several people in the film, which will more than satisfy any viewer's
06:22bloodlust. The film was viewed as being more commercial than previous Hellraiser films,
06:27something that was applauded and criticised in equal measures. Either way, Hellraiser 3 is a marked
06:32improvement on its predecessor and a really good watch. Also, it gave the world Motorhead's version of
06:37the song Hellraiser, so it deserves all the praise in the world.
06:41Number 4. Paranormal Activity 3
06:44The first Paranormal Activity movie changed the horror landscape forever when it was released in
06:492007. It took over the mantle of most profitable film of all time from The Blair Witch Project,
06:55and helped boost the found footage craze that the film had started. It's not surprising that the
06:59success of the original led to a wave of sequels, the first coming in 2010 and the second just one year
07:05later. This prequel – oh boy, horror franchises do love their third movie prequels, don't they?
07:11– is set during the childhood of main protagonist Katie, who appears as a young girl through old
07:15home movies. Paranormal Activity 3 pays off the conversations Katie and her sister Christy had
07:21in the second film about being haunted by a demon in their youth. This nicely ties the first three
07:25films together, creating a fuller, more well-rounded universe. The scares as strong as ever, the atmosphere
07:31as unsettling as ever, and the older setting breathed some new life into a franchise that
07:36was in danger of getting stale. Whilst the series would take a nosedive after this film, Paranormal
07:41Activity 3 is still a great follow-up to a horror innovator.
07:45Number 3. Army of Darkness
07:47Let's get this out of the way early. Army of Darkness is nowhere near as good as The Evil Dead
07:53or Evil Dead 2. But let's give it some credit here, because that was always going to be a tough
07:57ask. Still, as we mentioned with The Exorcist, let's not count this movie out based on what came
08:02before it. Army of Darkness picks up right where Evil Dead 2 left off, with Bruce Campbell's Ash
08:07Williams trapped in the Middle Ages. To return to the present day, he must find and use the
08:11Necronomicon, the mythical book of the dead that got him into this mess in the first place.
08:15There's plenty of gore, brutality, and zombie killing in this movie, all the usual Evil Dead
08:20sense of humour. Except this time, Ash is truly out of his depth in a time that he knows nothing
08:25about. If you put this film off because you heard it wasn't as good as the first two, then you're
08:30doing yourself a massive disservice. Army of Darkness is still a lot of fun, especially for
08:34Evil Dead. So get online and get yourself a 3-disc box set right this instant.
08:40Number 2. Day of the Dead
08:41Seven years after the seminal dawn of the dead, and almost two decades after the release of Night
08:47of the Living Dead, George A. Romero unleashed his third zombie horror classic on the world
08:51in the form of 1985's Day of the Dead. This movie features none of the characters in the
08:56previous two films, instead focusing on a group of scientists working to find a cure for the
09:01ongoing zombie apocalypse. One scientist insists that the undead can be domesticated with proper
09:06training and keep several of them captive to experiment on. Yeah, that'll end well.
09:10Being part of a legendary franchise certainly helps a film, but Day of the Dead also stands
09:15up on its own. It's a much bigger production in terms of characters and ideas, as well as having
09:19the biggest budget of any of Romero's zombie films at that point. Despite being the lowest rated of
09:24the first three dead films, Day of the Dead still captures the series' perfect blend of bloody horror,
09:30tense action and scathing social commentary. And the best part is that you can watch it without
09:34having seen any of the others. Although you should also watch the others, they're also very good.
09:39Number 1. A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 Dream Warriors
09:42After missing out on the second Nightmare on Elm Street movie, series creator Wes Craven was back
09:48for the third instalment, and it shows. Dream Warriors is set in a mental hospital, a great
09:53setting for any horror, and follows the exploits of a group of children as Freddy Krueger hunts them
09:58down in their dreams. The kids, aided by original protagonist Nancy Thompson, have to then track down
10:04Krueger's bones in order to lay his spirit to rest and end his killing spree. The third Elm Street movie
10:09is often regarded as one of the best in the entire series, and with good reason. It takes
10:13the series in a new direction, giving Freddy multiple adversaries instead of one. The kills
10:18are inventive, the characters are likeable, and this film is also very, very funny. Humor is an
10:24underrated part of horror. Strange considering how inherently silly the genre is, but the laughs
10:29both accidentally and on purpose are present throughout this film. Later Elm Street movies would go off the
10:34deep end, but this one manages to capture the spirit of the original whilst giving its own
10:39often side-splitting twist. And that concludes our list. If you think we missed any, then do let us
10:45know in the comments below, and while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe, and tap that
10:49notification bell. Also head over to Twitter and follow us there, and I can be found across various
10:53social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild. I've been Ellie with WhatCulture, I hope you have
10:58a magical day, and I'll see you real soon!