Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence

Trailer—Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence

I am at a distinct disadvantage here. I have not seen the first two movies in this series, although I have seen a lot of Larry Cohen films. Fans of the series seem to think this is a good film. Judging it on it's own, it was pretty boring. You never get a real good look at the maniac cop's (Robert Z'Dar) face, but what I did see was pretty grim. The death scenes seem to be staged to eat up the most film, not to give any thrills. Maybe if I saw the NC-17 Director's Cut, I may be more impressed. The ending with the car chase with Z'Dar, Caitlin Dulany, and Robert Davi was pretty intense. best part of the movie.

The plot apparently was not the main consideration of the people who decided to make this, the second sequel to the 1988 surprise hit; that's the only way to explain why there are so many gaps in it (like "Who is that voodoo master?", "Why did he choose to resurrect the Maniac Cop" and "Why does the Maniac Cop kill / help good AND bad guys so arbitrarily?"). Since justice had been set straight at the end of the previous installment, there is no really compelling reason for the title character to return from his grave, so the whole movie seems pointless and unmotivated. But the lengthy chase sequence near the end is so fast-paced and well-done that made me raise the film's rating by half a star. (**)

The first Maniac Cop is pretty good entertainment, but is nothing really special. Maniac Cop 2 was only fun for the first 10 minutes and then quickly went downhill. So after the dissapointment of 2 I wasn't exactly thrilled to see a 3rd installment, but after hearing so many good reviews, I bought it, and let me tell you it was worth every penny. !!!POSSIBLE SPOILERS!!!A voodoo priest resurrects the corpse of officer Matt Cordell. He sets out on a mission to protect the woman who was meant to be his wife by killing anyone who comes near her. It's up to Lt. Sean McKinney from the 2nd film to stop him. Good story, acting, and death scenes. ***1/2 out of *****.

In a word, wow! Maniac Cop one was awesome: great subject matter, assured direction, true excitement and Bruce Campbell. I thought I'd watch the sequel for a laugh and ... it too was awesome. Enter Robert Davi and some more great action and laughs. What's that I hear you say? A cheap eighties action/horror with an equal sequel? Well you won't believe this, but I watched number three last night and I was blown away. Once again this film is equal to the original, and also enjoys a new cynical humour which was great fun. In this movie the cops and reporters and doctors all have a really crass way of talking about death when Robert Davi ask's how his partner is doing he gets the reply "Put her in a rock garden", with her parents well in earshot! This kind of sick humour punctuates the impressive action and actually adds to the realism of the movie. I highly recommend this to anyone who likes to enjoy themself(which has to be everyone). Go watch!