Post by BloodyMonkeyZ on Jul 10, 2013 20:07:20 GMT -6
Texas Chainsaw Massacre has enough history and legacy behind it that a new movie in that franchise should an easy win. And yet, this entry into the franchise was forced to strip the word Massacre from the title. Political correct idiocy taken to an extreme. But this is a review of the work itself, not the anti-hype surrounding its release.
To be honest, I was not a huge fan of the prequel to the remake that came out a few years ago. I didn't think it really did anything for the series. It practically was a remake in and of itself. But this movie promised to tread new ground. And they had me from the first minute.
This movie starts with recaps of the killings in the original TCM movie. They are cut around credits and there is, what I believe is the sound of an old camera with the flash charging up and then the shutter tripping. It was used in the original. It did a great job taking me back to the original. And then they wowed me.
The movie starts exactly where the original ended. We see the brother run over by the semi, the survivor climbing into a pickup with Leatherface hot on her heels and then they drive away. New material comes in with police cars descending on the Sawyer home. There are all sorts of Sawyers inside that we never saw before, and the patriarch realizes that this is a problem that isn't going away. Even though he is family, they decide to turn Leatherface over to the police as a scape goat for everything. Luckily for Leatherface, a posse shows up with hate in their hearts and weapons in their hands. They want blood and turn the situation from an orderly police procedure into a chaotic shootout. The Sawyers are killed, but a baby survives.
And then we jump forward about 20 years. There is a bit of problem here because we "know" the original was back in the 70's, so jumping to modern times but only "20 years" doesn't quite mesh up. But I think I can overlook that to a degree. The baby is all grown up now and has no knowledge of her history as a Sawyer, she is Heather Miller.
She finds out that she isn't really a "Miller" when she gets mail about a Sawyer dying and leaving a house to her. Heather, her boyfriend, her best friend and her new boyfriend saddle up and head to Texas to claim her property. And then things get crazy.
I don't want to go into all the details beyond the setup. Someone said to me that this movie was "nothing new, same as always." But I disagree with that. This movie really explored the TCM world in a completely new manner. Sure, Leatherface still had a chainsaw, but there was much more story in this one.
That doesn't mean it was all wonderful. Apparently in this world, people have about 200 gallons of blood. Leatherface killed a girl about 200 yards away from the gate to the house and then drug her to the gate, up the drive, into the house, through the house, downstairs, through the basement labyrinth/lair to his kill room where he stuck her in a freezer where a cop found her. . . still alive. . .
As much as I liked the way this movie started, I really enjoyed the way it ended as well. Setting up what could be some new stories in a new era for the TCM franchise. The one spot where I think they missed an opportunity, and where I would have been gaga as a fan of the series. They should have gotten John Larroquette to do some sort of voice over at the start or end of the movie. That would have been a brilliant move.
Still, I give this a solid 4 stars. Not only worth checking out, but worth having on your DVD shelf
To be honest, I was not a huge fan of the prequel to the remake that came out a few years ago. I didn't think it really did anything for the series. It practically was a remake in and of itself. But this movie promised to tread new ground. And they had me from the first minute.
This movie starts with recaps of the killings in the original TCM movie. They are cut around credits and there is, what I believe is the sound of an old camera with the flash charging up and then the shutter tripping. It was used in the original. It did a great job taking me back to the original. And then they wowed me.
The movie starts exactly where the original ended. We see the brother run over by the semi, the survivor climbing into a pickup with Leatherface hot on her heels and then they drive away. New material comes in with police cars descending on the Sawyer home. There are all sorts of Sawyers inside that we never saw before, and the patriarch realizes that this is a problem that isn't going away. Even though he is family, they decide to turn Leatherface over to the police as a scape goat for everything. Luckily for Leatherface, a posse shows up with hate in their hearts and weapons in their hands. They want blood and turn the situation from an orderly police procedure into a chaotic shootout. The Sawyers are killed, but a baby survives.
And then we jump forward about 20 years. There is a bit of problem here because we "know" the original was back in the 70's, so jumping to modern times but only "20 years" doesn't quite mesh up. But I think I can overlook that to a degree. The baby is all grown up now and has no knowledge of her history as a Sawyer, she is Heather Miller.
She finds out that she isn't really a "Miller" when she gets mail about a Sawyer dying and leaving a house to her. Heather, her boyfriend, her best friend and her new boyfriend saddle up and head to Texas to claim her property. And then things get crazy.
I don't want to go into all the details beyond the setup. Someone said to me that this movie was "nothing new, same as always." But I disagree with that. This movie really explored the TCM world in a completely new manner. Sure, Leatherface still had a chainsaw, but there was much more story in this one.
That doesn't mean it was all wonderful. Apparently in this world, people have about 200 gallons of blood. Leatherface killed a girl about 200 yards away from the gate to the house and then drug her to the gate, up the drive, into the house, through the house, downstairs, through the basement labyrinth/lair to his kill room where he stuck her in a freezer where a cop found her. . . still alive. . .
As much as I liked the way this movie started, I really enjoyed the way it ended as well. Setting up what could be some new stories in a new era for the TCM franchise. The one spot where I think they missed an opportunity, and where I would have been gaga as a fan of the series. They should have gotten John Larroquette to do some sort of voice over at the start or end of the movie. That would have been a brilliant move.
Still, I give this a solid 4 stars. Not only worth checking out, but worth having on your DVD shelf
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