Color, 1994, 101m.
Directed by Eric Louzil
Starring Brick Bronsky, Lisa Star, John Tallman, Lisa Gaye, Albert Bear
Troma (Blu-ray & DVD) (US R0 HD/NTSC) / WS (1.78:1) (16:9)

Class of Nuke 'Em High 3Class of Nuke 'Em High 3 Three years after the release of the second Class of Nuke 'Em High film, director Eric Louzil (Lust for Freedom) struck again with an entry picking up exactly where the last one left off. That gigantic mutated squirrel has just laid waste to the city's nuclear power plant and the surrounding area, with beefy reporter Roger Smith (Bronsky) barely saving the day.

Flash forward a few years and his two twin sons, Adlai and Dick (both Bronsky again), have been split up due to the fickle finger of fate with the former raised as a good guy while the latter, kidnapped as a baby, has been bred by the wicked Dr. Slag (Tallman) and Professor Holt (Gaye) to become an aspiring villain. Both hit adulthood at record speed thanks to their mutated genes (courtesy of their subhumanoid mom), and their roles turn out to be part of a larger scheme involving scantily-clad women and huge hair to turn Tromaville into a toxic hell on earth.

Boasting a plot trumpeted by Troma head Lloyd Kaufman as a spin on William Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors (presumably a warm up to the far more clever Tromeo and Juliet), this may be one of the most random major films in the Troma catalog with a script that veers from one concept to the next with little rhyme or reason. That leaves plenty of room for gross-out gags and busty Class of Nuke 'Em High 3women, not to mention some eye-punishing fashion and hairstyle choices you won't believe, which means this is best appreciated running in the background when Class of Nuke 'Em High 3you aren't trying to focus on a plot. Pretty much everyone from the first film pops up again here in one capacity or another (though Gaye is significantly underused), while Bronsky is clearly having fun with his multiple roles (not to mention a groovy glowing hand that plays a pivotal role in the climax). Basically it's a mid-'90s Troma movie, so expect lots of hammy acting, fart jokes, goo, gratuitous nudity, and general stupidity.

Troma's ancient VHS and DVD editions of this film were nothing to write home about, taken from a pretty dreary open matte transfer with the usual washed-out black levels and, in the DVD's case, iffy compression. The Blu-ray does a solid job of upgrading the film and adding considerably to its visual appeal with lots of gaudy, eye-catching colors and far more detail and depth throughout. There's some visible element damage during the opening and closing credits and a handful of optical sequences, but generally the film is in fine shape. As usual there's just a lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo English track with no subtitle options. Extras include a new Lloyd Kaufman intro revolving around the concept of twins (acted out by two "identical" siblings), a very muffled and disjointed director's commentary, a 13-minute interview with "Troma superstar" Lisa Gaye about getting her start with the company, and trailers for the whole Nuke 'Em High saga.

Reviewed on November 20, 2015.