The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

2003

(Horror)

Rated: R

Running Time: 98 minutes

Starring: Jessica Biel, R. Lee Ermey, Mike Vogel, Jonathon Tucker, Eric Balfour

Directed By: Marcus Nispel,

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Outline

A group of kids in the heart of Texas fight for their lives from a chainsaw wielding maniac.

Review

Director Marcus Nispel knows his audience and for that I must give credit. More often than not directors lose their core audience by incorporating sub plots that the audience just does not relate to. Not that I am expecting any viewer to relate to this film, but the message this movie is bringing is gore and creepiness, and this movie did its job. Taking place in the seventies, a group of 5 kids/young adults are traveling cross country to see a concert when they pick up the oddest of hitch hikers. The hitchhiker warns the group to turn around, but of course the group plods on into the depth of Texas where these sorts of atrocities do not seem so far fetched. From the get go, the town they enter will give you the willies with its derelict buildings, and odd hillbilly inhabitants that do not seem all there. The group is beset with problems and needs the help of the locals to get them out of it. The film gets really good towards the middle as the group is split up (literally) and must fend for their lives from a group of maniacs. Not only that, but they have to avoid being killed by one of the most notorious bad guys in cinema history, Leatherface. The director has done his work in terms of setting up his introduction for a riveting blood bath. The infamous Hewitt residence is the perfect example of where mass murders could take place, and the interior is a jumble of weird items and unusual animals for the viewers delight. The acting is not the worst and you can feel the group’s plight which is all you can really ask for in a horror. The film, while overtly gory, still leaves a lot of the gore to the imagination further saving it from completely lacking any artistic style. The director did a really good job with Leatherface during the chase sequences for whenever you hear the chainsaw start up, instantly you are at the edge of your seat. The smoke coming off the chainsaw and Leatherface’s ambling shuffle, coupled with some great camera work lead to some tense moments and great scenes. The films bloody sequences can be shocking and in some cases down right over the top, but I felt this film never lost its focus in scaring the audience. Unfortunately In the latter half of the film, the story drags on and the film loses a lot of its steam. The tense shocking middle is kind of like drinking a red bull, and after that initial kick you feel kind of down for what comes after. This film could not sustain the sheer horror of meeting these villains and the first bloody scenes. After a while the blood and gore seems to lose its effect. The incorporation of too many incest looking characters in this town was a little too much to take as well. The ending, while trying to be powerful and bring closure to this nightmare seems to lack what a film of this perversion needed. I do recommend this film, and if you are a fan of horror and like being scared than this movie does a decent job of that. Be warned though as this gore will not be for the timid. Also for the guys, if you do not like horror, Jessica Biel running around in a ridiculous outfit is not half bad either.

T Factor + If you do not get tired of seeing people running for their lives then this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor - If you do not like gore that includes dissection and mutilation then this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: House of a 1000 Corpses, or the Devils Rejects.