PUPPET MASTER III: TOULON’S REVENGE (1991)

Most horror franchises hit their stride when they reach the third film: NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3 established Freddy Krueger as the “son of 100 maniacs,” FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 3 (D) gave Jason his iconic hockey mask, HALLOWEEN 3 completely blew up the previously established lore and gave us a twisted new story, and in GHOULIES III: GHOULIES GO TO COLLEGE…well you get the point. One film that rarely - if ever - gets mentioned when discussing the power of part 3’s is PUPPET MASTER III: TOULON’S REVENGE. That seems grossly unfair. While the PUPPET MASTER franchise may not be playing in the same league as NIGHTMARE or FRIDAY, it’s a franchise that has continued to survive in an era where its competition was falling by the wayside and it deserves a bit more respect. Allow me to tell you why.

Charles Band is a name that lives in fame (or perhaps infamy) among Hollywood circles. Through his production company, Empire Pictures, Band was the producer behind horror classics such as RE-ANIMATOR, DOLLS, TERRORVISION and TOURIST TRAP. While the films were moderate successes, the studio had to deal with increasing budgets and further financial obligations that led to it being shut down in 1987 but, as the saying goes, when God closes a door, he opens a window—and that window is Full Moon Pictures.

Formed in 1988, Full Moon Pictures teamed with Paramount Pictures to release their very first film, a killer doll picture called PUPPET MASTER written by Band, David Shmoeller and Kenneth J. Hall. Initially planned for a theatrical release, Band decided to eschew that. Seeing that the films he produced were gaining more traction on film than in their initial theatrical releases, Band pushed Paramount to release the film straight to video and so, on October 21, 1989, the first film was released straight to video. This move turned out to be a rousing success and led to the beginning of not only the PUPPET MASTER franchise but several other films of varying degrees of insanity under the Full Moon Pictures banner. From SUBSPECIES all the way through to the latest EVIL BONG film, each and every one of them owes their life to the success of PUPPET MASTER.

After that, Paramount and Full Moon moved ahead with a second film, giving minor backstory to the mysterious Puppet Master himself, Andre Toulon who was briefly seen in the first film. Here we learn that Toulon uses a formula to bring about the reanimation of his puppets and that Toulon had a wife who died. These minor glimpses were just the tip of the iceberg of what was to come. With the subsequent success of PUPPET MASTER II on home video a third film was all but assured.

Released in 1991, PUPPET MASTER III: TOULON’S REVENGE isn’t a sequel, but a prequel, revealing the secret of Toulan and his powers as the Puppet Master. It follows Toulan in 1941 Germany as he must battle against a group of Nazis seeking his formula for resurrection. Directed by David DeCoteau of A TALKING CAT?! fame, the film succeeds in not only telling a fun revenge story but also manages to shed some light on the franchise that fans may have been curious about.

PUPPET MASTER III is truly a heartfelt movie. Yes, you heard me correctly, the same film where a six-shooting puppet and a puppet that spews leeches out of her mouth slaughter a slew of Nazis in grisly gory fashions also features a large amount of emotionally touching moments. The most heartbreaking of these scenes is the one where Toulon (Guy Rolfe) witnesses the death of his wife Elsa (Sarah Douglas) at the hands of Nazi officers attempting to take his puppets and his formula. Of course, it was preceded by Toulon giving Elsa a puppet to signify the love that he shares with her and telling her that without her he would die, placing a gigantic target on her back instantly. Nevertheless, it doesn’t make the scene any less impactful when we witness Toulon breaking down in tears at what has occurred trying to comfort his dying wife.

Guy Rolfe is the secret weapon of this entire movie. In the span of one scene he can showcase a devilish charm, an overbearing sense of grief or a truly sinister intention. He also showcases something that was missing from the two previous films: a fatherly care for his puppets. Toulon treats his puppets with care, handling them very delicately; sure, it may be due to the fact that these puppets cost a lot of money to be manufactured, but I choose to believe that Rolfe wants to show the audience that they are not dangerous creatures, but simply children helping their father in a very twisted way.

This film also gives us one of the most important glimpses into the lore of the PUPPET MASTER universe: we learn the reason and backstory for why these puppets are alive. Throughout the film we learn that the Nazis are attempting to reanimate fallen soldiers with little success, utilizing Toulon’s formula of reanimation they believe is the key. Little do they know that Toulon’s puppets aren’t just animated wood, they were his friends who fought against the Nazi occupation and were killed for it and the traits of each puppet are inspired by the individual person. The secret to their resurrection isn’t simply that they were given Toulon’s formula: the secret is that they wanted to live long enough to keep fighting against the Nazis.

PUPPET MASTER III also succeeds in giving the puppets a formidable enemy in the amazing Richard Lynch as Major Kraus. Lynch was always an incredible presence on film (see BAD DREAMS if you don’t believe me) but here he gets to shine, doing his most over the top Colonel Klink German accent while also being truly threatening. In an ironic twist, Lynch’s character is given a puppet alter ego which has become the “face of the franchise” as it were. In the final moments of the film, Toulon shows Kraus how truly small he is when he reveals the knife and hook-handed puppet Blade which is made in the likeness of Kraus. It adds a bit of fun poetic justice to the film that would almost fit in perfectly with a TALES FROM THE CRYPT story.

At the end of the day, I can’t make you watch PUPPET MASTER III: TOULON’S REVENGE. All I can do is tell you that, like the puppets themselves, there is more to this movie than meets the eye. Sure, this film may be packed with blood and guts but what it also has in abundance is heart and soul.