You probably have not seen Warlock III: The End of Innocence (1999). Not a lot of people have. It was an outlier to a franchise that had marginal popularity in the 1980s and – to be clear – it was direct to video. It neither fits with the previous films from the Warlock franchise, nor is it particularly remarkable as a stand-alone horror film. It is, one might say, a ‘deep cut.’ Unless you were looking for it, you likely have not seen this direct-to-video horror film written by Bruce David Eisen and Eric Freiser and also directed by Freiser. Yet, as an adoptee film, Warlock III does some remarkable things. So, while it remains relatively obscure, I’m going to ask you to hear me out. Its lack of popularity means that the film did not have a deep effect on society, but at the same time, it seems to be almost like an accidental birth. It is horror, based around the journey of the adoptee and their search for truth. In turn, the 1999 film turns the fear of the searcher into a cathartic experience, a meat-grinder of a nightmare that succeeds in banishing the demonic, malign possibilities that are in attendance during the adoptee’s search for significance.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download