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New Line Home Cinema presentsHouse Party 3
(1994)
"Yo, Kid, you gonna let us bust our rap at your bachelor party? You know that's why we're here. See, we look at it as the party gonna be filled with big bootie girls, honeys, tenders, you know..."- Immature
Stars: Kid 'N' Play (Christopher Reid, Christopher Martin)
Other Stars: Bernie Mac, Immature, Tisha Campbell, Michael Colyar, Gilbert Gottfried
Director: Eric Meza
Manufacturer: WAMO
MPAA Rating: R for Language, suggestive scenes, brief nudity
Run Time: 01h:33m:00s
Release Date: 2000-06-13
Genre: comedy
| Style Grade |
Substance Grade | Image Transfer Grade | Audio Transfer Grade |
Extras Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C- | D | A | B+ | C |
DVD Review
What does a record company do when they want to showcase new acts and raise the profile of their artists and bill them as actors? They make films like House Party 3.Yo, so check this out. Kid (Christopher Reid) is getting married, but his playboy and hustler buddy Play (Christopher Martin) figures he should "get some" before he enters the shackles of matrimony, and wants to throw a mutha of a party in honor of the holy event. However, they need some dough to cover the catering, so they pitch their music management muscle to a local promoter—trouble is their act (TLC cameoing as Sex as a Weapon) isn't being too cooperative. Meanwhile bride-to-be Veda (Angela Means) is getting freaky over Play's ex-girlfriend while waiting for her stagette. Then, who shows up but the midget trio Immature (as themselves) who get dissed from the bachelor party, so decide to hold a jam of their own. Bring in uncle Vester (comedian Bernie Mac), a couple of ex-con caterers and we have the makings of some serious goings on. Yo.
Well, if the originality of the setup doesn't get you excited, I'm afraid not much else with this film will either. Thoroughly laced with "yo," "whattup" and stereotypical profane language, there are very few redeeming qualities. The script is shoved along with frequent showcases of rap artists Immature, TLC, R.A.S. Posse and Kid 'N' Play strutting their stuff. The storyline is completely predictable, with a few left fielders like a senile, porno-watching grandma, a not brief enough appearance by the always annoying Gilbert Gottfried (who is credited above most of the cast who are actually in the movie), and the helpful friend Stinky who has a thing for large women. The acting isn't bad, but the script is just so cliché that it gets old really fast. How many times do you really have to say "bootie" in two hours anyway?
I suppose if you enjoyed the first two films in this trilogy you may enjoy the closer, but for a party film it falls pretty flat. The soundtrack is well presented with a collection of rap artists, and Bernie Mac can be entertaining (if not understandable) at times, however for the most part, this was a waste of time.
Rating for Style: C-
Rating for Substance: D
Image Transfer
| One | Two | |
|---|---|---|
| Aspect Ratio | 1.85:1 - Widescreen | 1.33:1 - Full Frame |
| Original Aspect Ratio | yes | no |
| Anamorphic | yes | no |
Image Transfer Review: If I have one beef with New Line, it is that they don't have enough great films in their possession. The reason this is bad is because they deliver some very nice looking transfers that I wish were applied to more deserving films. House Party 3 is presented in both anamorphic widescreen and open matte full frame, selectable from the menu (though the film defaults to widescreen from the chapter menu). The image on both versions looks great, with no visible artifacting or noise in the picture. There is no edge enhancement, and colors are rendered exceptionally well. Film grain is very natural. Though not quite reference material, I wish more DVDs looked this good.
Image Transfer Grade: A
Audio Transfer
| Language | Remote Access | |
|---|---|---|
| DS 2.0 | English | yes |
| Dolby Digital 5.1 | English | yes |
Audio Transfer Review: The disc features both 5.1 and pro-logic soundtracks. While the 5.1 track is spacious and makes extensive use of the LFE and surround channels, the pro-logic mix is weak and collapsed towards the front center. For this type of soundtrack, the 5.1 presentation is great, especially in the numerous musical segments which are presented full range with lots of bass. Audio can be switched on the fly.
Interestingly, the fade credits feature an edited version of M.O.P.'s How About Some Hardcore, which I assume (considering the amount of profanity in the dialogue of the film) was to fill out and keep the MPAA warning off the the soundtrack album so the film's intended audience could buy it without their parents.
Audio Transfer Grade: B+
Disc Extras
Static menuScene Access with 20 cues and remote access
Subtitles/Captions in English with remote access
Cast and Crew Filmographies
1 Original Trailer(s)
4 Other Trailer(s) featuring House Party 1, House Party 2, Players Club, Friday
Packaging: Snapper
Picture Disc
1 Disc
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: dual
Extras Review: Extras are pretty thin, comprising cast filmographies of Reid, Martin, Bernie Mac, Gilbert Gottfried (who has a total of about a minute of screentime) and director Eric Meza. Trailers for House Party 1, House Party 2, Players Club and Friday are hidden in these filmographies, and all are presented in anamorphic widescreen with 5.1 sound. The quality of the trailers isn't as good as the feature, but it is still good to see consistent application of anamorphic throughout the disc. A trailer for House Party 3 is also available from the extras menu, again, anamorphic and in 5.1. Menus are static and don't add much to heighten the presentation.
Extras Grade: C
Final Comments
If this is your cup of tea, the audio and video presentation are top notch. Otherwise, I can safely recommend a pass on this one.Jeff Ulmer 2000-06-24