Why now is the perfect time to start watching the Terrifier series

If we talk about it More terribleGore is the first thing that comes to mind. Writer/director Damien Leone’s love and talent for practical effects is well known and has always been on display in the franchise. Horror 2the series’ first mainstream boom, led to reports of people vomiting and passing out during screenings horror 3 Such reports are now circulating in cinemas again.

With the third film in the series, in which David Howard Thornton plays the murderous monster called Art the Clown, More terrible has reached another peak of prestige and visibility in the horror world. Now the highest-grossing unrated film of all time, it has received very solid reviews from critics, and its ending proves that Leone isn’t done with Art and his wild tale of mayhem.

This feeling of ongoing promise and celebration is reason enough to look into it More terrible Saga at the moment. But there’s also a deeper reason hiding behind the smokescreen of sticky, bloodthirsty effects. If you look closely at these films, you can see how the stories of horror filmmaking grow and change in real time, and it all starts with this More terriblenow streaming on Peacock.

Why you should watch More terrible this Halloween season

Let’s get one thing straight right away: More terrible is the least narratively demanding of the three films in the main series so far. Building on previous short films and the 2013 anthology All Saints DayThe film is essentially the story of a wild, murderous night for Art, who initially presents himself as a human with particular fetishes and violent tendencies. There’s nothing necessarily at work here other than a slasher who wants to inflict maximum pain on his victims, but the more you get to know Art, the more you understand that this isn’t just a guy with a penchant for brutality.

That starts with Thornton, who brings a quality to the art that goes beyond his initial “creepy clown” appeal. There’s something otherworldly about him, the way he acts, the way he reacts to the world around him, sometimes he scowls, sometimes he grins and comes to life like a silent film comedian who can’t help himself Excitement to burst. The trick, of course, is that his excitement comes from the cruelest physical punishments he can inflict on his victims at any time, something that becomes increasingly sophisticated and brutal with each sequel. In More terribleArt enjoys violence large and small, and Leone’s gore effects sell absolutely every ounce of his cruelty.

But if you are a More terrible Skeptics, you may be wondering: What’s the point? Sure, gore effects are cool and scary clowns are still incredibly effective for the right audience, especially when a performer of Thornton’s caliber takes the helm. But let’s look beyond that, beyond the severed limbs and the gallons of fake blood and makeup on Art’s face. What are we really seeing here?

Well, for one thing, this is a classic example of getting stuck in at the beginning of something and then watching it grow from film to film. The Damien Leone who made it Horror 2 is a better, more thoughtful filmmaker than the guy who made it More terribleand he has only become more thoughtful and precise as a result horror 3. Watching the first film, you can see that growth, see how Leone has used each new rung of the budget ladder to his advantage, and see a horror voice grow louder and clearer in real time.

Then there’s the story itself, which becomes more sophisticated and risky as the films progress. If you’ve seen it horror 3If you go back to this first film and look for clues, you may not find any clear Easter eggs that point to this direction for the franchise (although you will find at least one other character in common). What you’ll notice in every decision Leone and Thornton make regarding the art is the early sense that we’re dealing with a being of unprecedented, mischievous, powerful evil. There’s something special about this clown, something sinister and primal, something that’s part of a larger, more ambitious story, and it’s there in the first film, lurking and waiting to emerge.

Terrifier is now streaming on Peacock.