My review was written in December 1990 after watching the movie on Concorde video cassette.
Third entry in this slasher film series eschews the role reversal aspects of Amy Jones' superior 1982 original to focus repetitively on a driller killer. Pic has played theatrically since September.
Debuting helmer Sally Mattison proves once again one doesn't have to be male to execute a sexist horror movie. Byu the final reel, when five full-bodied females are scurrying helplessly as the man wielding the phallic drill skewers them, even diehard genre fans will be groaning in dismay.
Poorly scripted by producer Catherine Cyrus, pic has almost no subtext to divert one's attention. After a beach volleyball intro, six young women (several played by older actresses) go to Keely Christian's house for a slumber party while her parents are away. Amon the boy and men who arrive to pester them, killer Ken (Brittain Frye) is a handsome nutcase with a drill, apparently deranged due to child abuse at the hands of his cop uncle.
Except for t&a interludes in which Maria Ford and voluptuous Lulu Wilson (or perhaps her body double)strip for the other girls and camera, pic consists of the women running around the house being killed. Gore is plentiful but unimaginative.
Worse yet, drill-as-phallus image dating back to the original's infamous 1982 poster is overemphasized: Ken is impotent but has his handy drill.
Christian does her best with the inevitable worm-turns central role but the rest of the cast is wasted. Technical support is meager.
