| Critters 3 | |
| Director: | Kristine Peterson |
| Producer: | Rupert Harvey Barry Opper |
| Screenplay: | David J. Schow |
| Music: | David C. Williams |
| Cinematography: | Thomas L. Callaway |
| Editing: | Terry Stokes |
| Studio: | Sho Films |
| Distributor: | New Line Home Video |
| Runtime: | 85 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
Critters 3 is a 1991 American science fiction comedy horror Direct-to-video film and the third installment of the Critters series, directed by Kristine Peterson. It was shot simultaneously (from February to July 1991) with its sequel, Critters 4. Unlike the first two films, it does not take place in the town of Grover's Bend. It marked Leonardo DiCaprio's film debut.
Sometime after the events in , Charlie MacFadden is tracking down the last of the Critters. A family of three – Annie (the main protagonist), Johnny (her little brother) and Clifford (the father) – stops at a rest stop when their car's tire pops.
At the rest stop, Charlie warns them and Josh, the stepson of a corrupt landlord, about the Critters. As this happens, a Critter lays eggs under the family's car and the family leaves, unknowingly taking the eggs with them. Soon after they arrive at their tenement, the Critters hatch and attack the sleazy maintenance man, Frank. When the landlord arrives, he too is eaten by the Critters. Josh locks the landlord in Clifford's room, unknowingly trapping his stepfather with the creatures.
Next, one of the residents is attacked and wounded. Annie, her family and five others (including Josh) try to get to safety in one piece by getting to the roof of the building. Charlie arrives and destroys the remaining Critters, saving the remaining tenants. The film ends in a cliffhanger as Charlie is about to destroy two Critter eggs, but is ordered not to and a containment pod sent from the Intergalactic Council crashes into the basement.
Cary Elwes mentioned on the commentary for the uncut edition DVD of Saw that he passed on the role of Josh.
The film was released as a direct to video by New Line Home Video on December 11, 1991. New Line Home Entertainment released it on DVD in 2003. The film was re-released in a set containing four films on DVD by Warner Bros. in 2010.
Scream Factory, a subsidiary of Shout! Factory, released the four films as part of "The Critters Collection" on Blu-ray. The set was available from November 27, 2018.[1]
Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 0%, based on reviews from seven critics, with an average rating of 2.8/10.[2]