Blu-ray Review: Slumber Party Massacre III (1990) has beach volleyball, dancing party girls, and a Driller Killer!

Slumber Party Massacre III (1990) is a fun, thrilling sequel to the original slasher cult classic. Jackie Cassidy (Keely Christian) is a high school girl who hosts a slumber party at her house while her parents are out of town. At the party, coeds drink beer, eat snack food, and dance to the music. They are having a great time by themselves until a few guys from school crash the party as a practical joke. Meanwhile, a mysterious serial killer with an oversized power drill is stalking Jackie Cassidy and her friends. As the party guests start turning up dead, the girls and guys have to fight for their lives. There is a suspenseful story, good acting, excellent use of music, and gory effects.

The story keeps the viewer in suspense wondering the identity of the Driller Killer and who will end up dead next. At the beginning of the film, Jackie Cassidy and Diane (Brandi Burkett) are sunbathing at the beach while watching their friends play volleyball. While they are discussing life, an odd looking young man dressed in all black sits down in the sand nearby and watches the volleyball game. He disappears after a while. At one point, the volleyball flies out of bounds. When Juliette (Lulu Wilson) goes to retrieve the ball, she discovers Ken (Brittain Frye), a former high school water polo player whom she knew of. He just happens to be lounging in the sand enjoying the view. When Jackie gets home after the volleyball game, she is startled to see the front door was left open. Her neighbor, a strange middle-aged academic man, is inside to look at the house, which is for sale. The three strange men introduced in the story all seem suspicious. Could one of them end up being the Driller Killer?

The acting in this film is really good for a low budget horror film, and the cast features an impressive lineup of attractive women. The director, Sally Mattison, takes the time to make the characters real and endearing. The viewer cares about the characters and feels bad when they are killed off. The main actresses, Keely Christian and Brandi Burkett, have a good relationship on screen throughout the story. There are good supporting performances from other actresses such as Hope Marie Carlton (Janine), Maria Ford (Maria), and Lulu Wilson (Juliette). The acting is convincing during both the happy moments and the horrific killings. The contrast between the fun of the slumber party--the innocence of youth--and the terrifying killings is what makes the story interesting.

Music plays a big part in the film, too. There is a carefree song playing in the background while the girls are riding along in the car on the way home from the beach volleyball game. It is one of two songs in the film written and sung by the director, Sally Mattison. The girls dance to fun rock 'n roll music during the party scenes, and there is a dark, scary underscore when the killer lurks. The composer Jamie Sheriff produced the rock songs and the score.

As with the acting and music, the effects are good. There are many gory kills in which the Driller Killer uses his weapon of choice to bore into nubile young flesh. The flesh wounds and blood spurting look realistic. Again, this is impressive given that this is a low budget horror film.

The quality of this blu-ray release from Shout! Factory is excellent. What is cool about this edition is that it includes both the original 75-minute R-rated version (high-definition) and an extended 87-minute unrated cut (high-definition with some standard definition footage). The extended unrated cut has more graphic gore, as well as additional dialogue scenes. Special features include a theatrical trailer and a slide show of production stills. There is also an audio commentary track for the extended version with director Sally Mattison, actresses Brandi Burkett and Hope Marie Carlton, and story editor Beverly Gray. It is fun to listen to them talk about the challenges and rewards of the production.