Three (DVD)

“Three” is obviously so close to “Saw” that someone’s going to be knockin’ on the door with a summons any day now.

Marc Blucas, Justine Waddell, Laura Jordan, Max Ryan, Bill Moseley

Here are the facts:

1. A masked killer
2. A killer that likes ringing up scarred folks and playing with their emotions
3. The killer sounds suspiciously like Tobin Bell
4. Nobody’s really safe from this guy
5. The guy likes to make people jump through hoops – via his maniacal games – before offering them any kind of clue as to his whereabouts or identity.

OK, so you know what I’m getting at – “Three” is obviously so close to “Saw” that someone’s going to be knockin’ on the door with a summons any day now.

Problem is, the book on which “Three” is based upon – the best-seller by Ted Dekker – has been out for a few years now, so the plagiarism accusation’s going to be immediately be thrown out the window.

What the jury won’t overlook though is the mere fact that the filmmakers should’ve decided to re-tool the film, especially now that “Saw” has beaten it to the punch. It’s fair-enough that it might’ve come first (I don’t wanna get into that argument), but they’ve got to be smart enough to know that people don’t wanna watch the same thing twice (hello “Saw 3”!) and therefore remould their movie into something…well, something different. Something not this.

It hasn’t happened though, and “Three” is no more than a blotchy facsimile of James Wan and Leigh Whannell’s highly profitable film. It’s a pity, there’s a lot of potential here to do something good, but obviously getting it out there and making a quick buck was the main concern on everyone’s mind the day they greenlit “Three” – not coming up with something fun and fresh.

Marc Blucas (who you’ll remember as Riley from TVs “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer”) is a college student who takes on a psychotic madman with a penchant for sadistic riddles and impossible timelines. Along with two other individuals, he finds himself trapped in an unwinnable game with a nutter.

One could blame the film’s low budget (just over 2 million) on the weaker elements of the pic…. But that’s a rotten excuse, especially when there have been good thrillers made for under a mill. There’s just been next to no effort put in here. You could film David Fincher’s “Seven” for 500 thousand, and in Kuwait, and it’d still pack a punch – – well, most of it would. (Those city skylines would be hard to duplicate there).

Rating :
Reviewer : Clint Morris