3 Wicked Witches

For the past few years, former cult director DeCoteau has built on a franchise with his 1313 movies which consists of one hour of good-looking guys parading around a huge California mansion in various states of underwear, taking long R-rated showers or writhing on sun-drenched king-size beds before getting killed/hypnotized/possessed by an evil spirit/witch/whatever. All his movies now look the same, with extremely slow pacing, barely a storyline and not one scare or trace of blood.

Although "3 Wicked Witches" is not officially part of the 1313 franchise, it borrows the same premise and elements (though it uses a different shower). What distinguishes it from its predecessors is a cast of entertaining ladies linking the scenes together (Lisa London steals the show) and actual blood during the murders ! Looks like DeCoteau was able to rent one of his former boss's Charles Band murderous dolls (and even part of the Puppetmaster soundtrack) to give this entry a genuine horror element.

Granted, it's still not scary. If anything, it inadvertently achieves what previous entries failed to do, which is titillate. The first victim actually slips his hand a few time under his whities in furtive close-ups before being dismissed, and another victim's basket is longingly filmed counter-plunging while he pumps his biceps. It's not much, and DeCoteau doesn't look totally comfortable with it, but it's still much more than what extremely tame previous entries like "Haunted Frat" or "Night of the Widow" have delivered.

This film has a lot going for it. By far, it's one of the most entertaining David DeCoteau films in years. 1). The cast is flawless. In the commentary track, DeCoteau mentioned he wanted his three original scream queens. That would have been a big mistake. These three ladies are far better actors, their chemistry is evident, and it all works. 2) The script is good. It's refreshing to hear dialog that sounds natural. The writer is far better than the one the director usually hires. 3) The location. Good riddance to that over-shot 1313 house. This place is a welcome change. 4) The puppet is effective and scary. A clown was a great choice. It worked. 5) The pacing is what you'd expect from a horror film. And, of course, the guys are hot as hell but that's what you'll find in any DeCoteau film. RapidHeart needs to make more films like this one!