Slumber Party Massacre III Synopsis & Review: Plot Summary

🎯 Quick Overview

Trailer

Director: Sally Mattison
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Release year: 1990
Runtime (length): 1h 27min
IMDb rating: 4.5/10 (3.7K votes)
Rotten Tomatoes: 0%

0.0

0.0 out of 5 stars (based on 0 reviews)

😅 Plot Summary – Badly Explained

Teen girls try to have a chill sleepover but keep getting interrupted by a dude with a drill, mainly because they refuse to leave the house or effectively fight back.

🍿 Slumber Party Massacre III: Detailed Plot Synopsis

A Beach Day Turns Deadly

The film opens with a group of teenagers enjoying a beach day playing volleyball. Among them is Jackie Cassidy, who plans to host a slumber party at her house, as her parents are away and the house is being sold. While at the beach, a strange man is seen staring at the girls, unsettling them. As the friends head home, the first sign of danger appears. One of the friends, Sarah, is brutally murdered in her car by an unseen assailant using a power drill. Her absence goes unnoticed as the others arrive for Jackie’s party.

The Party Begins, Danger Lurks Outside

Jackie’s friends arrive for the slumber party, sharing stories and trying to reach Sarah, unaware of her fate. Meanwhile, other potential suspects are introduced: Morgan, a neighbor interested in buying the house who spies on the girls, and the strange man from the beach. The girls’ boyfriends, Frank, Tom, and Michael, crash the party. After a prank goes wrong, Michael attempts to apologize but is tragically killed outside the house by a masked figure using a ‘For Sale’ sign post. A pizza delivery girl is also killed on the street.

⚠️ Spoilers and Ending Explained

If you plan to watch the movie first, watch here and come back to this section afterward.

See Spoilers and Ending

Spoiler: The Killer’s Identity Revealed

As the body count rises and the police remain unhelpful, the group is trapped in the house. Ken, Juliette’s boyfriend, suggests leaving to find his police officer uncle. He leaves with Tom, but in a shocking turn, Ken attacks and brutally injures Tom, revealing himself as the killer. Ken returns to the house, now confirmed to be the driller killer. The strange man from the beach is found dead in the basement, eliminated as a suspect. Ken begins his rampage inside the house, killing Duncan and trapping the remaining survivors.

Spoiler: Trapped and Fighting Back

The surviving friends are cornered in the house as Ken hunts them with his drill. They attempt escape routes, including a basement window and the back door, but find themselves blocked. Juliette is electrocuted in the bathtub with a vibrator, while Maria and Diane face brutal attacks from Ken. The girls try various methods to defend themselves, including lamps, a spear gun, and even liquid bleach to blind Ken. Despite their efforts and moments where Ken is incapacitated, he continues his relentless assault, driven by a seemingly unstable mind and hinted trauma.

Spoiler: The Final Confrontation

In the climax, Jackie, Diane, and Susie make a final stand against the blinded Ken. They manage to knock him down and subdue him temporarily. As Jackie goes to call the police, Ken regains some vision and brutally kills Diane. Enraged, Jackie grabs the drill and confronts Ken. After a struggle, she turns his weapon against him, drilling him to death. The ordeal ends, leaving Jackie as the sole survivor, finding a photo on Ken of him and his uncle, hinting at the dark past that potentially fueled his rampage.

🎬 Cast & Characters

Jackie Cassidy (Keely Christian): The host of the slumber party and the main protagonist who confronts the killer.
Ken (Brittain Frye): The charming friend who is revealed to be the deranged driller killer targeting the party guests.
Diane (Brandi Burkett): One of Jackie’s closest friends who actively participates in fighting the killer.
Maria (Maria Ford): A slumber party guest who becomes a victim after discovering one of the bodies.
Frank (David Lawrence): A boyfriend who crashes the party and attempts to defend the girls from the attacker.
Duncan (David Greenlee): A boyfriend who arrives at the party and is one of the first male victims inside the house.

💬 Memorable Quotes

Duncan: “Besides, they’re tongs!” – Said exasperatedly when Jackie tries to grab barbecue tongs to defend the basement window, mistaking them for a fireplace poker.
Officer O’Reilly: “just a bunch of girls with overactive imaginations.” – Dismissing Jackie’s calls to the police reporting strange noises and potential intruders.
Ken: “What a waste.” – Spoken coldly after Janine is severely injured jumping through a glass door to escape the killer.
Ken: “Now we’re even…almost.” – Said by the killer towards the end of the film, hinting at his motive stemming from past trauma related to his uncle.

💰Box Office

Budget: $350,000
Domestic Gross: $1,242,995
Worldwide Gross: $1,242,995

💥 Slumber Party Massacre III Reviews

Personal Review

Okay, so I went into Slumber Party Massacre III expecting exactly what the title promises, and it totally delivered on the ‘massacre’ part, maybe less so on the ‘slumber party’ vibe past the first 10 minutes. It was one of those movies where you spend the whole time yelling at the characters for being so incredibly dumb. Seriously, how many times do you knock the killer out and then just… walk away? Or refuse to leave a house when every door and window is basically an exit? It was frustrating but also hilarious in a ‘can they actually be this stupid?’ kind of way. The death scenes were pretty gnarly though, that drill gets a workout! Maria Ford’s scene trying to escape through the basement window was a moment I won’t forget, for better or worse. And the electrocution scene? Peak ridiculous slasher. Overall, I had fun watching it, but it was definitely the kind of fun you have making fun of a movie rather than being genuinely scared or invested. It’s pure, unadulterated late-80s/early-90s low-budget slasher cheese.

Who would enjoy:
- “Fans of 80s and early 90s slasher films”
- “Viewers who enjoy B-movies and exploitation cinema”
- “Horror fans interested in completing classic genre series”
- “Those looking for films with explicit gore and nudity (Viewer discretion advised)”
Content warnings ⚠:
- “Graphic Violence and Gore (including drill use, impalement, electrocution)”
- “Nudity and Sexual Content (including implied sexual assault)”
- “Terror and Intense Situations”

Professional Reviews

Review Synthesis: “Slumber Party Massacre III attempts to return to the more straightforward slasher roots of the first film after the bizarre second entry. While it offers decent gore and a higher body count, it suffers from a predictable plot and characters who make eye-rolling decisions. The attempt at a ‘whodunit’ falls flat when the killer is revealed too early. It’s a by-the-numbers effort that lacks tension, only recommended for die-hard genre fans seeking cheap thrills.
Review Synthesis: “Look, you know what you’re getting with a title like this. Dumb characters, a flimsy premise, and someone with a power tool. Slumber Party Massacre III delivers on the trashy fun, especially in its over-the-top death scenes (hello, death by vibrator!). While the acting is mostly bad and the plot makes little sense, there’s a certain low-budget charm. It’s best watched with friends ready to heckle the screen.

Audience Reactions

Viewers loved the over-the-top gore and creative, albeit silly, death scenes.: Many found the characters’ poor decision-making frustrating but also a source of unintentional comedy. The film is widely seen as cheesy fun for genre fans.

The gratuitous nudity and ‘girls in their underwear’ moments were a key draw for some viewers.: Compared to the second film, many appreciated the return to a more traditional slasher format, even if it felt generic at times.

Overall Consensus: A divisive sequel seen by some as a dull, formulaic slasher and by others as cheesy, fun-bad low-budget horror, often considered better than the second film but inferior to the original.

Awards

0.0

0.0 out of 5 stars (based on 0 reviews)

Rate Now!

Watch Now!

🛠️ Behind the Scenes

“Actress Hope Marie Carlton performed her own stunt when her character crashes through a glass door.”
“The house used for filming was located at 2013 Addison Way in Los Angeles.”
“The film utilized the same house set immediately after filming for Roger Corman’s ‘Sorority House Massacre II’ (1990) was completed.”
“The film exists in multiple versions, with the unrated and later DVD cuts featuring additional dialogue, scenes, and gore not present in the initial R-rated VHS release.”
“All films in the original ‘Slumber Party Massacre’ trilogy (1982-1990) were notably written or directed by women.”

🖥️ How to Watch Slumber Party Massacre III?

As of late 2023, ‘Slumber Party Massacre III’ may be available to stream on various platforms that rotate horror movie selections. You can also typically find the movie available for rent or purchase digitally through services like Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, Vudu, and YouTube Movies. Physical copies on DVD or Blu-ray can also be found for sale on Amazon and other retailers.

🎥 Similar Movies

If you enjoyed Slumber Party Massacre III, you might like these similar films:

The Slumber Party Massacre (1982): The original film in the series, establishing the premise of a slumber party terrorized by a driller killer.
Sorority House Massacre II (1990): Produced by Roger Corman using the same house set immediately after ‘Slumber Party Massacre III’ wrapped production.
Black Christmas (1974): An influential proto-slasher film featuring a group of female victims being terrorized within a house during a holiday, with a killer lurking inside.
You’re Next (2011): A modern home invasion horror film involving a family gathering that turns into a deadly siege, featuring a resourceful female protagonist.
Pieces (1982): A notorious, low-budget, and often nonsensical slasher from the same era known for its outlandish gore and camp value, appealing to fans of over-the-top horror.

🛒 Slumber Party Massacre III Related Products

Slumber Party Massacre Collection [Blu-ray]: Own all three classic Slumber Party Massacre films in high definition. Features bonus content like interviews and commentary.
Drill-Themed Horror T-Shirt: A unique t-shirt featuring a stylized graphic of a power drill, paying homage to iconic slasher weapons.
The Complete History of 80s Slasher Films Book: An in-depth e-book exploring the golden age of the slasher genre, including lesser-known gems like the Slumber Party Massacre series.
Indie Horror Movie Poster Set (Random Assortment): A collection of posters from various cult and low-budget horror films, similar in style to Slumber Party Massacre III.

🎧 Soundtrack

Slumber Party Massacre III features a captivating soundtrack that enhances the movie’s atmosphere and emotional impact. Here are some notable tracks:

“Love 69” – performed by High Class Trash

You can find the complete soundtrack on Amazon Music and Apple Music.

🤨 FAQ

Is Slumber Party Massacre III connected to the other movies?

Yes, ‘Slumber Party Massacre III’ is the third film in the original ‘Slumber Party Massacre’ series. While it features a new killer and a different cast of characters than the previous installments, it continues the theme of a power drill-wielding killer targeting young women at a slumber party.

Who is the killer in Slumber Party Massacre III?

The killer in ‘Slumber Party Massacre III’ is revealed to be Ken (played by Brittain Frye), Juliette’s boyfriend. His motive is vaguely tied to a traumatic past involving his police officer uncle, hinted at by a photograph found on him at the end.

Is Slumber Party Massacre III gory?

‘Slumber Party Massacre III’ is known for its increased gore compared to the previous films. It features several bloody death scenes utilizing the killer’s signature drill, as well as other weapons like a chainsaw, a ‘For Sale’ sign, and an infamous electrocution death.

Why don’t the characters in Slumber Party Massacre III just leave the house?

A common point of criticism for the film, characters often fail to escape the house despite clear opportunities. Various moments show them being trapped by a barricaded door or simply choosing to hide rather than flee, a common trope in slasher films that often frustrates viewers.

🔥 Bonus Content

An UNSETTLING Serial Killer Movie

Curious about ‘Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer’? This video really breaks down why it’s such a notorious and unsettling film. It’s a must-watch if you want to understand the movie’s intense legacy.

✨ Rate

There are no reviews yet. Be the first one to write one.