Alright fellow tapeheads, dim the lights, maybe adjust the tracking just a hair, and let's rewind to a time when horror-comedy sequels got gloriously weird. Remember browsing those video store aisles, maybe past the big hits, landing in the horror section, and seeing that box? Today, we're pulling a strange one off the shelf: Ghoulies III: Ghoulies Go to College (1990). Yeah, you read that right. Forget dusty crypts; these little monsters are hitting the books... sort of.
This flick crash-lands somewhere between a Troma film and a rejected Animal House subplot, and honestly, that’s part of its bizarre charm. The premise alone is pure late-night cable absurdity: Professor Ragnar (Kevin McCarthy, yes, the Kevin McCarthy from the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers!) keeps the titular demonic critters locked away, using them as part of a campus prank war between fraternities. Naturally, they escape, and chaos ensues across Prank Week at Raw Lick State College (a name that feels very 1990 direct-to-video).
### Higher Education Horrors
Let's be clear: this isn't the darker, meaner vibe of the first Ghoulies (though that film's infamous toilet poster probably lured more unsuspecting renters than the movie itself warranted). By Part III, the franchise fully embraced camp. Under the direction of effects maestro and occasional director John Carl Buechler – the guy who gave us the impressive practical Jason in Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988) and directed the equally odd Troll (1986) – Ghoulies III leans hard into slapstick and groan-worthy one-liners. Intriguingly, Buechler actually brought his established effects house, Magical Media Industries, Inc., to work on Ghoulies II, though a different company handled the creature duties here. Still, his fingerprints, shaped by years of crafting monsters out of latex and ingenuity, are subtly present in how the chaos unfolds.
The plot, such as it is, involves student Skip (Evan MacKenzie) trying to save his grades and maybe win the heart of Erin (Eva LaRue, who many would later recognize from All My Children and CSI: Miami). But mostly, it's about the Ghoulies causing mayhem. Remember those rubbery little puppets? This film gives them distinct personalities – Rat Ghoulie, Cat Ghoulie, etc. – and, crucially, voices. Hearing these formerly silent terrors crack wise is... an experience. It strips away any lingering menace, replacing it with the kind of humor you'd expect from cut-rate Gremlins knock-offs.
### Practical Pranks and Puppet Pandemonium
This is where the VHS Heaven vibe really kicks in. Watching Ghoulies III now is a stark reminder of the pre-CGI era of creature features. The Ghoulies are pure practical effects – puppets operated by dedicated craftspeople just off-screen. You can almost feel the limitations, the jerky movements, the fixed expressions. And yet, there’s an undeniable charm to it. Buechler, an effects guy at heart, clearly enjoys staging scenes around these physical creations. One memorable sequence involves a Ghoulie messing with plumbing, leading to a geyser erupting from a toilet – a callback, perhaps, to the original's marketing gimmick? It's goofy, low-tech, and utterly tangible in a way modern digital effects often aren't. You believe those puppets are really there, interacting clumsily with the sets and actors.
It's fascinating to see Kevin McCarthy, a genuine screen legend, chewing the scenery as the beleaguered Professor Ragnar. Did he know what kind of movie he was in? Probably. Did he care? Doesn't seem like it! He brings a level of professional commitment that almost feels out of place, grounding the absurdity just enough. Retro Fun Fact: Ghoulies III was actually filmed back-to-back with the even more notorious Ghoulies IV (1994) to save costs, which explains the shared aesthetic of… well, cheapness. The budget was razor-thin, reportedly under $1 million (a pittance even then), forcing creative solutions and likely contributing to the film’s rough-around-the-edges feel.
### Was It Worth the Rental Fee?
Look, nobody is mistaking Ghoulies III for high art. The jokes are often juvenile, the plot threads dangle loosely, and the acting outside of McCarthy is… enthusiastic college-movie standard. The film barely made a ripple on release, heading straight for the welcoming shelves of video stores where its target audience undoubtedly found it during late-night browsing sessions. Critics at the time likely dismissed it entirely, if they noticed it at all.
But viewed through the lens of nostalgia, as a relic of the direct-to-video horror-comedy boom? It’s weirdly watchable. It’s got energy, some genuinely amusing practical gags (if you appreciate that sort of thing), and the surreal sight of little rubber monsters participating in college pranks. It captures that specific flavor of low-budget 90s filmmaking where ambition often outstripped resources, resulting in something uniquely strange. I definitely remember seeing this lurid box art staring back at me from the rental shelf, promising creature chaos on a campus budget.
### VHS Heaven Rating: 4/10
Justification: The rating reflects the film's undeniable technical shortcomings, weak script, and overall silliness. However, it gets points for Kevin McCarthy's baffling presence, John Carl Buechler's creature-feature pedigree, the sheer audacity of the premise, and its value as a time capsule of low-budget, practical-effects driven 90s horror-comedy. It's objectively "bad," but possesses a certain goofy, watchable charm for fans of the era's B-movie output.
Final Thought: Ghoulies Go to College is a prime example of a sequel losing the plot but gaining a certain rubber-puppet absurdity – a perfect slice of cheap, cheerful, and slightly sticky VHS-era creature feature nonsense best enjoyed with low expectations and maybe a slice of cold pizza.