Killjoy 3
Directed by John Lechago
Courtesy of Full Moon Entertainment
Released: 2010

I think I have a new favorite sub-genre of horror: demonic clown movies.

Now, longtime followers of my blog are probably wondering why I’m reviewing the third movie in the Killjoy series without doing the first two beforehand. The answer is simple: I can’t seem to find the first two. They’ve both been in my Netflix Saved queue for a while but there’s been no-go on an arrival date. Plus my local Hastings does not have them either. So, since the fine folks at Full Moon Entertainment were kind enough to send this one to me, I decided to give Killjoy 3 a go and hope I could follow what was going on.

And I’m sure glad I did because this film is A LOT of fun.

If you’re not familiar with Killjoy, he is a demon of vengeance that has, for a reason I’m not sure of, taken on the form of a clown. Well, a demon-clown anyway, as he’s got sharp teeth and horns. The specific plot for Killjoy 3, though, is this courtesy of imdb.com:

The demon clown Killjoy is resurrected once again, but this time he is not given the name of his victim and is trapped back in his own realm. Using a magic mirror, he lures four unsuspecting college students into his realm where he can have his macabre fun! A mysterious man returns and we finally discover who Killjoy’s true target is!

One of the main reasons I enjoyed this film so much is because of actor Trent Haaga, who plays the titular character, Killjoy. With a sadistic, deadpan punch, Haaga brings Killjoy to horrifying yet comedic life and seems to dwell comfortably within the demonic clown’s skin. In short, Haaga was born to play this part, and I have to wonder if I would have enjoyed the film as much were someone else behind the face-paint.

Adding to this is Haaga’s excellent supporting cast, who portray a motley crew of lower demons also posing as clowns. The most notable for me is scream-queen Victoria De Mare, who plays Killjoy’s psycho-succubus girlfriend, Batty Boop. De Mare brings a unique wit to her character and also appears to embrace the fiendishness of her inner-monster as she tortures her victims with sensuality. It’s also of interest to note that, as far as I can tell, she is completely nude throughout the whole movie and covered only in paint.

But while the movie is very entertaining and fun to watch, it does have a couple of flaws. The run-time is only 78 minutes, which is a shame because the plot could use more detail. I was left wondering about a couple of unanswered questions as the credits rolled, but that could possibly be because I didn’t watch the first two films. Also, for as good as the demonic clown effects are, the gore (which is very minimal) leaves a lot to be desired. All we basically get to see is a bit of blood and an infused Siamese-twin on the body of an adult man.

Overall though, I really enjoyed Killjoy 3 and am glad I now have it in my DVD collection. It has opened my eyes to a new class of horror films (I guess ‘It’ sorta did back in 1990, but that one could have been better) and is the reason I’m going to double my efforts to track down Killjoy 1 and 2. If you like your horror with a touch of goofy comedy, definitely give this film a look.

MSB