Review: Nurse 3D

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

PLOT:
Abby Russell is a well-respected nurse by day but once night falls she becomes a huntress. With an insatiable need for bloody vengeance, she lures cheating married men to an untimely death. When this psychopath finds herself falling for a young nurse she is mentoring, things get complicated. After a night of debauchery between the two, Abby begins to take control of the young innocents’ life in the bloodiest of ways.

REVIEW:
In NURSE 3-D, Paz de la Huerta is one hell of an inspired choice for a psychotic nurse obsessed with the lovely Katrina Bowden. Her performance is unreal as in, not a single person in the world could deliver the lines as laughably bizarre. With her first moment on-screen she offers up why she is “dressed like a slut.” She explains in narration that this is how she lures married men to a macabre demise. Sure she is terrible here, but in what you could call an oh-so-brilliant way, bringing this nudity laden comedic thriller to a high level of camp. The way she speaks is almost inhuman and flat, yet it may be one of the best casting choices I’ve seen of late.

This tale of murder and sex is a familiar one. When a young nurse named Danni (Bowden) has a wild night with her mentor Abby Russell (Huerta), it soon becomes obsession. Abby – a psycho who kills married men after luring them into sexual situations – falls desperately in lust with the new girl. So much so that all those in Danni’s life find themselves facing certain danger, including her loyal boyfriend Steve (Corbin Bleu) and her cheating stepdad (Martin Donovan). Call it a SINGLE WHITE FEMALE for a modern age, this twisted tale is filled with horror and a ton of humor – much of it is even intentional.

Director Douglas Aarniokoski (who co-wrote the screenplay with David Loughery) injects a sense of style and fun and isn’t afraid to sex things up. There is hardly a single moment where Huerta isn’t naked from the waist down – although usually she is sporting a lace bra. From the hot and sweaty bodies dancing close at a club or on top of the sheets the sex is plenty. Both of the leading ladies reveal a whole lot of something for the camera. Even when they are dressed for work, the nurses’ uniforms are unlike anything I’ve seen outside of a porno. That there is one sexy hospital!

Sure Aarniokoski fills the screen with a ton of nakedness, but he also creates a pretty stylish looking exploitation flick. The aerial shots of the city are quite impressive and far more accomplished than one would expect from a movie about a crazed nurse. And as far as the gore is concerned, the filmmakers offer up a few satisfyingly bloody kills including a man impaled on a fence with another thrown through a car window after a violent accident. It is the kind of over-the-top bloodshed than makes a movie like this a great choice for a midnight screening. It’s just a shame that the 3D effects aren’t nearly as impressive as they should have been aside from a couple of fun gags.

As much fun as NURSE 3D manages to inject, there are plenty of cringe inducing moments. The dialogue is sometimes dreadful and the characters are about a dumb as you can get. It makes very little sense and Bowden’s character is unnervingly dim – thankfully she is amazingly stunning and is still pretty likable. And when it comes to Huerta, this so bad its good performance will delight fans of trashy cinema. I do question the choice of using a different actress for some of the voice-over narration. Perhaps Abby has split personality and can alter her voice? I can only imagine the reasons why they’d take that route. Of course if you are looking for something a little more serious… Why the hell would you see a movie called NURSE 3-D?

Your enjoyment of this flick really depends on what you are looking for. Leading ladies Bowden and especially Huerta are naked and incredibly sexy. The blood flows steadily, there is one especially wacky slash and chase sequence in an operating room. And the supporting cast is game to the craziness including Kathleen Turner as a head nurse, Martin Donovan as Danni’s scumbag stepfather, Judd Nelson as a sleazy doctor and Niecy Nash as a scene-stealing, wisecracking friend to Danni. NURSE 3-D is a mindless mess of a movie and the 3D effects feel forced and don’t quite work. Even still this is a visually enticing hour and a half that is willing to do just about anything to excite. High art it is not, but if you are looking for a good time you might want to give this NURSE a call.