Species III

If Species 3 lacks the star power of its previous incarnations - mostly notably Natasha Henstridge, whose participation here is relegated to a cameo - the movie succeeds in delivering lean, mean B-movie thrills by paring down the franchise's premise to its most exploitable elements - copious nudity and gore. Henstridge's voracious alien/human hybrid Eve dies gruesomely in the film's opening moments, but not before giving birth to an infant, who is rescued by a college professor (Robert Knepper) and grows into the pulchritudinous form of Sunny Mabrey. Unfortunately, she proves to be her mother's daughter in every way by setting out to mate with--and kill--any male unlucky enough to cross her path. While a definite step down in terms of plot and performance quality, Species 3 has glimpses of atmosphere and suspense in addition to the blood and skin shows, and makes good use of H.R. Giger's unsettlingly sensuous creature design, which should please franchise fans, gore hounds, and omnivorous sci-fi viewers. --Paul Gaita