In Dude Bro Party Massacre III, a group of dude bros in a radical fraternity are suspended for pulling a heinous prank during Greek Week. During their suspension, they hole up in an old sorority house by the lake where they are stalked by a bogus killer named Mother Face. The End.
Dude Bro Party Massacre III is a threequel in a fictitious trilogy. It is available in full frame with VHS tracking issues to add to the authenticity of the gimmick. It is presented as a taped copy of a midnight movie broadcast from the ’80s that a youngster stayed up to tape on his VCR. It is billed as being the only known copy in existence. The filmmakers have even gone so far as to insert rad ’80s commercials that were produced solely to accompany the film. A lot of painstaking effort went into making this movie bad-good and it shows.
Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet, and Jon Salmon of Five Second Films direct from a script that they co-penned with Alec Owen, Michael E. Peter, Ben Gigli Timothy Ciancio, Joey Scoma, Mike James, and Brian Firenzi. The creative team behind the film has really outdone themselves with both the screenplay and attention to detail.
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The performances are all hammed up to the extreme and it works perfectly for what the film is setting out to do. This one of the very few instances of a movie that intends to be so bad it’s good and doesn’t fall flat on its face. What’s even more impressive is that it succeeds on almost every level. Everyone is in on the joke and it works brilliantly. Everything is turned up to eleven and the results are glorious. This is thanks in no small part to a directorial trio that really understands satire.
Speaking of performances, the film is loaded with awesome celebrity cameos, from Andrew W.K to Patton Oswalt to Larry King. Yes, that Larry King.
The film goes for the ’80s aesthetic in the same way that films like The Sleeper have tried (and failed). But where the other throwback efforts released in recent years have fallen short, Dude Bro Party Massacre III succeeds at recapturing the lightning in a bottle that was the 1980s slasher film while simultaneously lampooning the s**t out of it. The effects are awful and awesome at the same time (intentionally so). They are achieved practically and look like they could have been pulled straight from an ’80s gore fest. The wardrobe, the hair, the makeup: It’s all on point.
Dude Bro Party Massacre III is simultaneously an amazing sendup of frat culture and ’80s slashers. It calls out the homoeroticism lurking just under the surface in nearly every fraternity across campuses everywhere and does it with a tongue in cheek charisma that even the most dedicated frat bro would be hard pressed not to appreciate.
The Mother Face character is exceptional. She is the kind of killer that I would love to see live to kill another day. Everything from her facial scars to her amazing arsenal of weapons to her peculiar mannerisms and gravelly voice are dead on. If this film ends up gaining traction, I could absolutely see her starring in a sequel.
My only significant criticism of the film is the pacing. For the most part, it the picture maintains a solid pace. But three are a few of lulls in the middle that left me a little bored at times. However, even in the slow spots in the second act, there is still enough witty dialogue to keep the feature afloat.
Dude Bro Party Massacre III is definitely worth checking out for fans of ’80s slasher films and anyone that digs well done satire. You can check out the film for yourself here! You can thank me later.
WICKED RATING: 7/10
Director(s): Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet, and Jon Salmon
Writer(s): Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet, Jon Salmon Alec Owen, Michael E. Peter, Ben Gigli Timothy Ciancio, Joey Scoma, Mike James, and Brian Firenzi.
Stars: Alec Owen, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Paul Prado, Kelsey Gunn, Joey Scoma, Mike James, Andrew W.K., Greg Sestero, Jimmy Wong, Brian Firenzi, Maria Del Carmen, Patton Oswalt
Release Date: Available now via iTunes and DBPM3 Website
Studio/ Production Co: 5-Second Films
Budget: $400,000 (Estimated)
Language: English
Length: 103 Minutes
Sub-Genre: Slasher, Horror Comedy
