Review: Texas Chainsaw is supposed to be a direct sequel to the original 1974 film which starts off where
the original left. Which means parts 2,3,4 and the remake and prequel to the remake have been thrown out the window and dismissed. I actually was open to seeing what they would do and what direction they would take the character of Leatherface. In some ways it does go in a different direction, but fails on so many levels.
First and foremost being that after the beginning sequence which sets up the film and ties it to the original is supposed to take place in current time which makes no sense due to the main character Heather is only in her mid to late 20's when she would be closer to 40 by now. That right there is a big flaw if you ask me and really it's quite annoying. Also they use modern technology like iphones which was not available in the year it should of taken place.
Things like that and the fact that the plot is paper thin really takes away from what this film could of been and that is a serious sequel. Unlike the original film this one does not have the amazing atmosphere and the down and dirty realistic feeling. Instead it is very predictable and honestly not suspenseful at all. Now the things I did like is how they kinda turn it into a revenge film in a way, also I did like how Leatherface did seem to be very close to what Gunnar Hanson did as the character. Which also reminds me that there are cameos from two past TCM series alumni which was Gunnar Hanson (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 1974) and Bill Mosely (Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2). Those 2 cameos were great to see even if they only were in the beginning.
Now when it comes to the gore which there is a good amount of, it really wasn't anything special and at times very badly done. The worst of the gore was dealing with a meat grinding scene and all the gore there was done by CGI which was fucking horrible. Now the one time I really enjoyed the gore is when one of Heather's friends was being chainsawed in half which was done with practical effects. In the end the gore was disappointing. There is a couple of things I wanna mention about that was scenes paying homage to the original. The two things I noticed was when they do the butt shot of this girl in the film with very short red shorts which is like from the original. The other thing was they did a jump scare with a chest freezer like the classic one, but was done really bad this time around and it was also too predictable.
I seriously wish they would of tried better with this film and worked more on the plot and taken more time to make it look authentic to the time it should really taken place. I know it may of been a little hard to do because of budget restraints, but I think they could of. This was just very sloppy and careless film making. Basically respect for the original was not given like it should of been. Overall this was a let down of a film that could of been an awesome sequel. The only other positive thing I can end this review with is that the guy playing Leatherface was quite good and had a stare that was very chilling. Overall I say rent it before you buy it.
-Daniel "Damnation" Lee
Director: John Luessenhop
Genre: Horror
Blu-ray/DVD Release Year: 2013
Theatrical Release Year: 2013
Time Length: 92 mins.
Company: Lionsgate Films
Website:
www.lionsgatedvd.com
ADDITIONAL SCREENSHOTS:
