Pulse 3 (DVD)

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I reserved this paragraph to go off on another tirade about the excessive overuse of green screens that have almost as much screen time as the WiFi signal blanketing all of Texas, but I think I´d rather save everyone (including myself) some grief and end it here. If anyone cares, you can read my previous review to get the full scoop. It´s the same deal.

I'm assuming the Weinsteins decided to release "Pulse 3" under their Dimension Extreme label since they gave "Pulse 2: Afterlife" the same treatment, but I didn´t see anything extreme about this film. Aside from a ghost stuck in a loop repeatedly blowing off her head with a shotgun and a very brief cameo of a phantom's boob, the whole movie was rather tame. It felt like false advertising, and now it will make me approach future releases under the brand with extreme caution.

Video:
"Pulse 3" mimics its "Pulse 2: Afterlife" counterpart with an anamorphic widescreen picture presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The exterior shots in direct sunlight are actually quite clear and striking, but the majority of the film is dark and murky with a color palette that's heavily muted and subdued. If it was done this way to mask the green screen annoyance, it didn´t help.

Audio:
The film's audio comes in a single Dolby Digital 5.1 track that is on par with "Pulse 2: Afterlife." Overall it´s pretty decent, although there wasn´t much here to write home about, either. Also included are optional English and Spanish subtitles.

Extras:
Apparently the studio didn't think much of this release, either, and therefore only a couple of bonuses trickle onto the DVD.

First we have a "Feature Commentary By Writer/Director Joel Soisson, Producer Mike Leahy, Actress Brittany Finamore, and Editor Kirk Morri." Soisson commandeers the microphone and gives the others the odd chance to chime in when he tires of hearing himself speak.

"Pulse 3: Behind-the-Scenes" (8:27) is a short "making of" featurette of sorts, although I don't feel comfortable labeling it as such. Basically it's just a few comments from the filmmakers with some additional footage thrown in for good measure. The only interesting part was hearing the (albeit brief) real-life history behind the incidental character Bluesman (Robert "One String" Gibson).

There's also a string of forced trailers on startup: "Pulse," "Pulse 2: Afterlife," "Feast," "Feast II: Sloppy Seconds," "The Wizard of Gore," and "George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead."

Just like "Pulse 2: Afterlife," "Pulse 3" comes housed in an attractive foil-embossed slipcover. Next time instead of pimping out the DVD packaging, put this money to better use—like, oh I don´t know… perhaps the film´s budget?

The Final Cut:
It´s unthinkable that any film with the word "Pulse" in the title could come right out of the gate practically dead on arrival, but that´s exactly what we have here. The initial film wasn´t all that popular to begin with, and the two sequels take the prize for the blandest horror movies I´ve ever seen. I just can't in good conscience recommend "Pulse 3," since all it is really is the latter and duller half of a three-hour borefest.

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