The Saw Is Family: The Next Generation (or Formerly Known as The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre) (1996)

 

    Well, well, well. We might again Chainsaw. Just when I thought we were finished. You've decided to crawl out from the shadows once again to remind me that I missed a film. A film that was made by one of the original writers of the Chainsaw '74, Kim Henkel. It was released by Columbia Pictures in its original form. After the film failed, Columbia took it upon themselves to recut the film a few years later and try again. Why did this happen? 

    Kim Henkel apparently didn't like the way Tobe had gone with Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2. He viewed that it was time to try for a more serious approach. Why he felt like that was what he delivered? That's beyond me. He managed to make a film that I believe is super ridiculous. Yeah, I get what he was trying to do. But how long can you take a young Matthew McConaughey that is delivering a Nicolas Cage level of performance seriously? Take into consideration that he's wearing a brace that is controlled by a remote control at one point. It's absurd. I was left wondering how the hell Leatherface had even come into the family in the first place. As Tony from Hack the Movies and Joe and Sean from Movie Dumpster discussed recently, it's almost as if he just came with the house. Now given that Henkel had decided to center the film's main idea around the idea of the "Illuminati" being behind the Family and such, it probably was the case. Or is Leatherface more like the title of 007 and this is another person that was shaped by the group into what they viewed "Leatherface" should be? Wait a minute, that actually doesn't sound too bad really. Call him "Double-Oh Chainsaw" with a License to Cleave. Would that work for a sequel? 

    As for someone that co-wrote the original '74, I thought Henkel would have been a good fit for the film. However, it feels like this attempt ended up turning the ridiculousness and parody up to 15. Whereas, I would say that Chainsaw Part 2 would be at a 10. I mean there are some ideas there. Illuminati being a way of commenting on the status of Horror at that current time which needed to scare people. That's kind of a interesting approach. However outside of featuring Leatherface, this isn't a 'real sequel' to the '74 classic like Henkel had conceived it to be. The original plan was to have Vilmer and W.E. being the Hitchhiker and Cook (Nubbins and Drayton) characters. Honestly, that all feels like Henkel was saying shit for the sake of saying shit. Whatever he had to do to get this film made - even though it kinda turns out to be following the same path of Chainsaw Part 2. 

    The kids in this movie are kids. They are the typical high school dramatic that everyone knows to be. Henkel just wanted them to be there for the family to attack and harass. They are complete caricatures of what everyone was doing in films back then. He wanted it to be goofy. Therefore, they are absolutely ridiculous and outside of Renee Zellwegger - there to be hated. This is the film where we are supposed to be rooting for the family. So go get 'em Leatherface, I guess. 

    This brings me to Leatherface. I have seen some people say that he's not like the Leatherface from '74. I honestly feel like to an extent it does feel similar. However, he's a humongous goof. I mean look at the porch scene between Zellwegger and Leatherface. He's literally screaming at her because they are both scared of each other. Leatherface ultimately feels like made more inept to attempt to lift up the other members of the 'family'. 

    I understand that there are some people that love this film. It is a complete Looney Tunes of a film. It revels in its absolute insanity. If you're looking for something serious, go find a different film. If you're looking for something that's completely off the wall, give this a shot. I honestly don't know if I'll find myself watching it again. I may get the Shout! Factory release to check out the Director's Cut (which I've heard is better). But the theatrical cut of this just didn't work for me and a lot of details were forgettable. On a positive note, this isn't the worst Horror movie that I've seen. 

Rating: 2.5 out of 5. "All right, all right, all right.". 

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Streaming Originals: Slapface (2022)

 

    Welcome Back Everyone to Streaming Originals! I know it's been a while since I covered anything that was streaming exclusively. Unless we count the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre? But I don't. Anyways, this is the series where I dive into different films that are exclusively streaming to one of the many streaming services available. The last one that I covered was Hellblazers over on Tubi. 

    Today, I had the pleasure of checking out Slapface from Jeremiah Kipp. It's streaming exclusively on Shudder. The synopsis for the film is as follows: "A boy deals with the loss of his mother by creating a dangerous relationship with a monster rumored to live in the woods."

    Slapface is an incredibly interesting film with a few different layers to it. On one side, it's a deep look of a family struggling to hold itself together. On another, it's a story about a boy trying to find himself and figure out who he is. Another layer finds the boy dealing with a monster. The more that I try to unpack the film, the more layers I begin to uncover. And then I hear Shrek saying "Onions have layers.".

    August Maturo leads this film as Lucas, a teenage boy that is dealing with the loss of his mother. He lives with his older brother, Tom, played by Mike Manning. The interesting thing is that both of these characters were faced to grow up way too fast. Lucas is completely unsure of what to do and how to handle himself as he's found himself bullied by three girls - one of whom has a crush on Lucas. Tom isn't very helpful as he is on the same path that his father was before him - drunk. At the beginning of the film, he's trying to fix things and make it right for his younger brother. But through the course of the film, you just see the alcoholism bubbling itself to the surface as his way of escaping from life. If only his life hadn't take that turn with the car accident, where could that have left him? Would he have followed in his father's footsteps? This was something that I found myself thinking a lot about. And honestly, that's pretty fantastic to see supporting characters in a film being so layered. As for Maturo, it's interesting seeing where he goes on this journey. Part of it reminds me of Let The Right One In. And there's another character, Anna, that dates Tom. She tries to actually get to know both brothers. She genuinely cares for both of them. But she's like this brief glimpse of light and hope for the characters before the darkness fully consumes everything. 

    Then there is the creature. Well, it's honestly interesting to try and figure out if it's a creature or if it's a witch. There's a local legend involving a Witch. Lucas accidentally summons it one day as he walks into a 'house' on a dare. Whatever you may like to call this 'entity', it is incredibly original. It harkens a little bit to the Tooth Fairy from Darkness Falls in movement briefly. It's something that I found extremely unnerving. 

    There is a lot more that I could say about Slapface. It just has so many layers to it. I thought I had it figured out exactly where the story would go. But nope, it kept proving me wrong. It is a dark tale. By the time, the ending had arrived - I wouldn't have been surprised if one aspect I guessed would turn out to be right. There's a lot of different ways that someone could interpret the film as well. This is a film that I feel like could be compared to Antlers in its handling of certain elements. And I would say that it succeeded more than Antlers did. It left me with an ending where I was speechless. It's a bold story and one that I would recommend checking out. 

Rating: 4.5 out of 5. 

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Come Stay At The Yankee Pedlar Inn: The Innkeepers (2012)

 

    Hello everyone. Ti West is a director that I'm not exactly one hundred percent sure of. I haven't really seen much of his work. I think part of it is because he's a director that has gone a bit under the radar. It feels like he hasn't been able to get some good luck just yet. Hopefully that'll change next month when his new film, X, is released. That's a film that I'm a bit interested in seeing because I feel like it's going to be absolutely off the wall. I watched the first trailer for it and it looked fantastic. 

    When I sat down to look through West's films, I first came across House of the Devil. House of the Devil is very much a throwback to 70s horror. I remember when I first seen it I didn't like it. I hadn't seen many 70s horror films at the time. So I had a hard time understanding exactly what they were going for with the film. Now, I dig the film a bit. And then I came across Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever. I had to let out a big sigh. I won't dive into my thoughts on that one just yet but stay tuned. Maybe we'll get a Cabin Fever retrospective. 

    All of this then brought me to The Innkeepers. I remember seeing the film when it first came out. Then I realized that it was hitting its ten year anniversary - what the hell? Where did the time go? It's absolutely mindboggling at how quickly time went by. 

    Now when I first watched this film, I was completely unaware that The Yankee Pedlar Inn was an actual hotel. I thought it was something that had just been made for the film. Through taking some time to research it, holy crap. Now there will be some that believe in ghosts and some that will roll their eyes at the whole possibility. After moving into our current house, I'm tending to gravitate more towards believing. Lots of weird things happen round here for sure. Knowing that the hotel is real, it adds a whole new layer to the film. It grounds the film and story being told in such a fantastic way. Hell, I'd rank this up higher than the original Conjuring. 

    For those that haven't heard of The Innkeepers, the synopsis is as follows: "After over one hundred years of service, The Yankee Pedlar Inn is shutting its doors for good. The last remaining employees -Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy) – are determined to uncover proof of what many believe to be one of New England’s most haunted hotels. As the Inn’s final days draw near, odd guests check in as the pair of minimum wage “ghost hunters” begin to experience strange and alarming events that may ultimately cause them to be mere footnotes in the hotel’s long unexplained history." 

    One of the large reasons that the film works so incredibly well for me is its cast. This film really rests on Pat Healy and Sara Paxton's performances as we spend almost the entire film with them. There's definitely a solid friendship that can be seen between the two of them. And with Luke, there is the fact that maybe he wishes for more than just friends. There are a few others here and there who all deliver great performances as well. But ultimately, this is Luke and Claire's story. Another reason it works so well is because this is a solid old fashioned ghost story. Revisiting this now, it still feels like a breath of fresh air. It takes its time to build up an atmosphere before delivering the spooks. It doesn't just go all willy nilly with jump scares in your face for the sake of it like other films have done. When there are spooks, there's a reason for them. I found myself just a little unnerved by the creeping atmosphere and whenever the shots begin to linger. It's all handled so very well. 

    I feel like when this film was released it wasn't as talked about as it should have been. It feels very much like an underrated film. If you've come across it over the years and decided eh, it may not be for me. Do yourself a favor and give it a shot. You'll get one of the, in my opinion, best ghost stories in years. It still has left me in chills and looking over my shoulder every now and again in my house. I cannot recommend this enough as I found it very effective. 

Rating: 5 out of 5. 

It can be found over on The Roku Channel, Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Peacock to stream.

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Retail is Killer: Black Friday (2021)

    

 

    Hello everyone, Matthew back once again. I hope everyone's having good week so far. Sorry for the mishap with our schedule this week. Winter weather causes havoc around here for us. And yesterday resulted in a snow day. 

    When I had first experienced 'Black Friday', I went by myself. It was 8am that Friday morning. I had celebrated Thanksgiving by myself as my family had all gotten sick. So we hadn't really gotten together for the holiday. That was such a surreal experience unto itself. I figured if I go early, it wouldn't be that bad. However, I was not prepared for what was to come. People. Lots of people. Everywhere. No personal space. It was an absolute nightmare. The saving grace of that first time as I went to Wal-Mart and Target was that I was by myself. It allowed me to navigate through the crowd with a bit of ease. But I always felt like there was something so eerily unnerving about Black Friday. And that brings us to today's film. 

    Today's film is Black Friday. It was released in 2021. The film was written by Andy Greskoviak and directed by Casey Tebo. The synopsis is as follows: A group of toy store employees must protect each other from a horde of parasite infected shoppers. 

    Now when you look at the synopsis, it comes across as a very small story. And it's true, this is a small film. However, sometimes those turn out to be the most fun and have a lot of charm. When filmmakers don't have a lot to work with, it's fantastic seeing the way that they are able to come up with things to help the film. This is a film that could easily turn out to be something that just doesn't work. If at any point, there was something that just didn't work - it could change one's experience with the film.

    For me, I absolutely applaud Black Friday. It's a film that I had heard a few things here and there of negative reviews. However, I try my hardest to make sure that when I go in to a film - I go in with an open mind. I did the same thing here as well. This film was something that felt like a throwback to 80s Horror. I remember growing up and coming across all of the different Holidays that received a horror movie. And it's finally time that Black Friday joins those ranks as this corporate holiday has become such a big thing for us. 

   When the film first started, I wasn't sure where they were going to go with things. We got to see a few of the employees at the local All-Mart getting set up for the Black Friday extravaganza. Honestly at this point, the only thing I had known about this film was that it had Devon Sawa and Bruce Campbell in it. That's what had sold me on it. Imagine my surprise when one of the employees encounters a 'creature' of some sort. Throughout the course of the film, we discover that it's a parasite that manages to infect humans. I don't think I'd consider that to be a spoiler. Anyways, this allowed the film to take on a much different approach then I initially thought it was going to. It actually made the film feel like a sister to James Gunn's Slither meets Clerks or Employee of the Month (really forgot about that Dane Cook masterpiece). I sense a double or triple feature at some point down the road. 

    The cast for this film was fantastic. It is very much an ensemble piece. Devon Sawa leads the film as Ken Bates. Ken is our everyman. He's a bit of a punching bag over the course of the film. But a bit in the vein of a well-known S-Mart employee, it feels like. He's forced to drop his kids off with their mother so that he can work on Black Friday. On his way to the All-Mart, Ken picks up his co-worker, Chris (Ryan Lee). After arriving for their shift and preparing for the onslaught of customers, we are introduced to the rest of the All-Mart workers: Marnie (Ivana Baquero), Brian (Stephen Peck), Archie (Michael Jai White), Ruth (Ellen Colton), Emmett (Louie Kurtzman), Anita (Celeste Olivia), and Bircher (Stanley Bruno). They are all led by their wonderful manager, Jonathan Wexler (Bruce Campbell). 

    And after that, we are off to the races with the film. All of the cast does a wonderful job in this film. Bruce Campbell continues to deliver some fun performances. I'm so used to him playing a likeable character that seeing him playing the jerk manager that we've all had at some point if you worked retail is very interesting. He relishes in being able to ham it up a bit. Devon Sawa delivers a pretty fantastic performance. He feels very much in the vein of an 'Ash' type character. The one that doesn't want to accept things and make a run for it till he has to stay and fight. I found it to be a very layered performance from him. Michael Jai White. What else can I say about Michael Jai White? He's a badass. 

    The creatures in this film were a nice change of pace. Initially, I had remembered someone using the word 'zombie' to describe one set of creatures. Nah, they ain't zombies. It's more akin to Slither as taken over by a parasite. However, the initial appearance of the parasite was incredibly creepy. It culminates in something that I could consider to be an homage to the Blob. It's pretty fantastic. It reminds me "Where the hell is our new Blob film?". Why can't we get something like that? The effects in the film are all good. They are a bit more low-key and appear practical. And that's a breath of fresh air. Again, we don't get to see many practical effects as if they are used, they quickly receive a gloss of CG. 

    Black Friday is a fun film. It knows exactly what type of film it wanted to be. It has a fantastic charm to it. I enjoyed it a lot and it'll be fun to return to it every once in a while. Probably on Black Friday from this year on. A nice new tradition. If you haven't checked out the film, I'd say give it a shot. 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5. 

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BlazinBlue's Book Review: Beach Bodies (2022)

 

    Hello everyone, welcome back to Book Review! Last time, we talked about Slice of Paradise, a new anthology from DarkLit Press. As of right now, you can check it out on Amazon for Free to celebrate its release. It's definitely worth checking out. 

    Today, I am happy to return with a look at DarkLit Press' second release, Beach Bodies. Beach Bodies is another anthology in the Beach Vacation Horror genre. Much like its sister book, Slice of Paradise, it's a tour de force as well. 

    After checking out the first book, I thought I had more of an idea of what to expect from this go around. However, I am pleased to say that I was wrong. Ben Long and Andrew Robert once again have brought together a fantastic set of stories. The interesting thing was that it felt like Slice of Paradise was more focused on providing glimpses of horror with their stories. Almost as if you could pick it up for a brief read when the reading bug catches you. In this installment, the stories have more room for them to breathe. I wasn't sure if the length of the stories would leave me feeling a bit overwhelmed. That is something that could happen as I have experienced with other anthologies in the past. But I am happy to say that is not the case. No, this time around it felt like the stories are allowed the room to leave more of an impact on the reader.

    Like I did in my Slice of Paradise review, I will highlight a few of the stories that I felt strongly impacted my experience with Beach Bodies. Once again, it's safe to say that there are many great entries as well. 

    The first story that I'd like to talk about is The Flesh of The Golden Dune Hotel from Fox Claret Hill. This is actually the first installment in this anthology. It struck a chord with me that I was unprepared for. Tom and Levi, a couple arrives at The Golden Dune Hotel for an unforgettable belated Honeymoon. It is a beauty to behold as everything seems perfect. Maybe too perfect though as there's something off about the employees, who are always smiling. 

    This was something else. It pulled me in as I was able to relate to Levi and Tom. My partner and I share a similar story - been married going on 2 years now, together for 6 years and we had a small honeymoon. So it was relatively easy putting me in their shoes. However, the point the story turns - it turns. It completely falls off the deep end in a very memorable way. And before I knew it, it left me terrified of going to a hotel to stay. I'm definitely going to be checking out more from Fox Claret Hill in the future. 

    Our second story is Babe from Wendy Dairymple. Layla and Danny are on their honeymoon. It's supposed to be a time of love and something special. After one dip in the water, Danny begins to notice an itch in his ear. It's something that is far worse than they could have imagined. 

    This is another simple yet brutally effective story. It has the feeling of being a nice counterpoint to The Golden Dune. While Levi and Tom were likeable, Layla and Danny felt like the opposite. Layla reminded me of what I imagine a Bridezilla on their honeymoon would be like. Have to have everything perfect. Except they have to share it all on their Instagram. The relationship between the two felt very shallow. I get that they just got married and all, but feels like each of them went into the marriage not on the same page. As if both of them came from privileged families.  Did they actually care for each other? Tough to say. It's honestly something that I feel like can be left up to the readers. However the direction the story went was very unexpected. It left me wanting to know more of what was going on. And that's something I strongly feel is what good stories can do. 

    In the end, Beach Bodies is a wonderful companion piece to Slice of Paradise. I can only imagine what Long and Robert had to do to pull together both of these anthologies. I highly recommend you check this out. 

 Rating: 4 out of 5. 

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It Came From The Dollar Tree: Murder Party (2007)

 

    Hello everyone, I am back with another installment of It Came From The Dollar Tree. I am happy to see that you guys are enjoying this series. I hope that with these reviews it can help someone decide to take a chance on some of these films. This past October, I had been looking at new horror films to highlight for my 31 on 31 series. I noticed as I was checking out others lists that Murder Party was on their lists. So, I began trying to find it to watch. Unfortunately, my searches were all for naught. It wasn't available anywhere outside of renting or buying the film digitally. However, I checked out a Dollar Tree near me and imagine my surprise of flipping through their film selection to find it there. My partner, Mandy, was shocked as I grabbed the film and put it into the cart. "Why?", they asked. "Need it for a new series that I am going to be doing.", I had answered. 

    You see, Murder Party was one of the first films that I purchased for this series. Actually I think it was the first film that I had purchased. This was a small idea that I was hoping I could do at some point. Fast forward to four months later, I had pulled the trigger on the series finally as I had amassed a collection of over 31 films from Dollar Tree. I mean if I was going to do this series, it made absolute sense to make it worth doing.

    After four months, I finally sat down to watch the film. Murder Party wa s released in 2007. It was written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier. It starred Chris Sharp, Kate Porterfield, and Tess Porterfield Lovell. The synopsis is as follows: A random invitation to a Halloween party leads a man into the hands of a rogue collective intent on murdering him for the sake of their art, sparking a bloodbath of mishap, mayhem and hilarity.

    When I looked at the DVD case, it proudly says that it's like Napoleon Dynamite meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre. After watching the film, I honestly cannot say that it's not wrong. I wouldn't really say that it's like those two though. It is it's own thing. It is an extremely underrated independent gem. It was honestly a lot of fun. The only downside that I had found with the film is that it took too long for me to find the film.

    There is a lot to love about Murder Party. It has a core group of characters that are so fantastic. Chris Sharp is Christopher, a man that is honestly really down on his luck. Okay, that's kind of putting it very lightly. This man is a loser. He's very much a pushover. At one point, he tells his cat to get out of his recliner and then caves when the cat refuses to move. That's how much of a loser he is. It may seem like I'm being harsh on the character. Nah, that's not the case. It actually plays into the charm of the film. If someone had to say that it's like Napoleon Dynamite, they could use Christopher as being the 'Napoleon Dynamite' of the film. He's very much the straight man of the film as he witnesses so much crazy later on in the film. After he finds an invitation just blowing on the sidewalk on his trip home from the video store, he eventually decides to give the party a chance. He constructs a sweet set of armor from cardboard. That's extremely quick thinking on his part. 

    After arriving at the 'party', Christopher quickly regrets his decision. He discovers it was all a ruse set by a group of deranged 'Art' students. This group is the biggest bunch of posers that I have ever seen in a film. They say that they want to be artists and such. But none of them except for one has any kind of talent whatsoever. Their whole plan is to commit a murder in order to impress Alexander (Sandy Barnett) and his friend, Zycho (Bill Tangradi) to receive a large arts grant from him. The students consist of Paul (Paul Goldblatt), Macon (Macon Blair), Sky (Skei Saulnier), Lexi (Stacy Rock), and Bill (William Lacey). Each of these actors brings an incredible performance that makes them each so memorable. They never come across as fully into committing their plan which is hilarious. They are all talk. At one point, they try to chase down Chris as he is able to get free. And the results is just so absurd. Then, they take the time to just sit around in a circle and talk. It just adds such a 'high school' party vibe to things. 

    The location for Murder Party also plays into the charm of the film. It's main setting is a factory somewhere in the city. Around the room, cardboard boxes are littered everywhere. That's why when there's the chase sequence - it's hilarious seeing each of them trying to be 'tough' in the pursuit. 

    This film knows exactly what it's trying to be: a horror comedy. It absolutely plays to it's strengths in a fantastic way. Never once did I wonder if the film was going to be over. It's paced out very well. The gore and effects were handled very well. They weren't completely as over the top that they could have been. And that completely adds to the film's charm as it allows us to focus on the characters. It ultimately left me loving the film. And it's something that I would gladly recommend to others as it shows that sometimes films don't have to have a huge budget to tell a great story.

It can be found over at VUDU and Tubi to stream.

Rating: 5 out of 5. 

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The Saw Is Family: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)

 

    Hello everyone and Happy Friday. The day that some of us have been waiting for has arrived. Texas Chainsaw Massacre '22 has been unleashed upon the world and onto Netflix. Now, The Saw Is Family has been an nice refresher course of the Chainsaw franchise. I have always enjoyed these films. Again, I have mentioned before that I can find something to enjoy about each of them. When one looks at the franchise as a whole, it's really interesting to see the different takes that have been presented. It gives the franchise very much an anthology feel to it, even if it is very unintentional. This is a quality that makes this franchise a bit unique and stand apart from others. 

    My partner had asked me if I was planning on covering Texas Chainsaw Massacre '22. I immediately had responded with a 'Yes'. At this point in the year, this is a big drop for us horror fans. Even though, Netflix may have us thinking otherwise with its lack of marketing for the film. 

    Then my son had asked me the best question, "Can I watch it?". I had to tell him "No, you're not old enough just yet.". But it made me happy to hear him asking these kind of questions. I know that when it's time for him to start seeing more horror films it'll be special. At this point, he hasn't seen many horror films. He's seen the original Halloween (TV Cut), John Carpenter's The Thing (TV Cut), and the gamut of horror films for kids. Yes, that includes Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark. He really loved that one. But he does know their names as he has seen my partner and I play Dead By Daylight before. So he knows Ghostface (I have a mask), Freddy (I have a custom glove), and Jason (who he calls Choo-Choo-Ha-Ha). Well, he has seen glimpses of the headers that I created for The Saw Is Family and asked me who was in the movies. His exact words were "Whose Chainsaw? And why does he look like your one figure?". In my collection, I have the Leatherface vinyl from Handmade by Robots. But I told him that his name is Leatherface. He asked what the films are about. I explained that mostly they are about family and he'll get to see them one day.

    I was so excited for Texas Chainsaw Massacre '22. I knew that Fede Alvarez had produced the film. That was really brought me on board for the film. I loved his take on Evil Dead and I loved the first Don't Breathe. The passion that he has for the genre shows through his films. So when I had heard that he was going to be producing a Chainsaw film. I was a little hesitant. It was said to be a direct sequel to the original Tobe Hooper classic. Okay...why? Why did this need to be? By tying yourself to the classic, what could you bring to the table that is different? At this point, we already had a film that tied itself to the original and that was Texas Chainsaw '13. Aren't you going to be putting yourself into a corner by doing this? 

    Then I had heard that they were bringing back Sally, the survivor of the original. Why? Are we trying to pull a Halloween '18 in a Leatherface suit? Would that work? How could that even work? By this point, we already know my thoughts on Halloween '18. At first, I was extremely hesitant about that film. And then when it was released, I was a bit underwhelmed by it. It just felt off to me. Honestly, it's because that was only a third of the story that they had wanted to tell. But in Fede I trusted because if he believed in this story, it has to be something special. 

    Then the synopsis was released and it involved social influencers. Immediately I was like What? Social Influencers? You mean like Youtubers, Instagrammers, and TikTokers? Those kind of social influencers would be terrorized by Leatherface? Okay, this could go very wrong. But again, I believe in Fede and what he has done for the genre so far. Well, outside of Don't Breathe 2 which just didn't work for me.

    Then the film went dark. No, of course this has to happen to a Chainsaw film. It had happened to Leatherface and Texas Chainsaw '13. So of course, our boy Leatherface just can't get a break these days. No word had been said about the film or if it would be released. All that had been briefly mentioned was that there was a director attached. Through creative differences, they had been removed from the production. Someone new was attached to it. There had been test screenings and those had been very positive. But still no mention of when it would see release.

    Then news broke last August that the film had been picked up by Netflix. I was intrigued. Okay, Netflix I see what you're doing. Lately, they have been doing their best to bring Horror to their service. Some of it had been very successful - Fear Street, I'm looking at you. The two entries for Nobody Sleeps In The Woods Tonight were very fresh and unique. I personally enjoyed them. At this point, Netflix does have competition for Horror with Shudder, Tubi, and now ScreamBox. So it makes sense that they would pick up the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre. 

    I was hoping that it'd see release this past October. I was ready for it. I wanted more Chainsaw. I wanted more of Leatherface. It had unfortunately been too long since we had an entry in this franchise, in my opinion. And I wanted to see Leatherface get his due. With the Lionsgate entries, it's very clear that they didn't know what to do with him. They were putting out products that they thought would test well and then see the money come pouring in. Those entries are a product of a company that didn't believe in Leatherface. They didn't understand what they had. They just knew that they had to try and do something different. And when that failed, they took a page out of Platinum Dunes's book by making a prequel. If they had faith in the franchise and the character, we would have seen a different outcome. The company wouldn't have shelved the entries then just release them when it was too late.

    Today, I woke up at 3:30. I immediately brewed myself some coffee, sat down, and turned on Netflix. I was ready to see more of Leatherface. I was ready to have my questions answered. I was ready to see what this take would be. What would they do in this film that hadn't been done before? What would make this stand apart from Texas Chainsaw '13? I am happy to say that I did have my questions answered. 

    Texas Chainsaw Massacre '22 is a film made by those that understood the assignment, in my opinion. There will be those that won't like it. That happens. We have seen that quite well with Halloween Kills and Scream. But for every person that doesn't like it, there's a high chance that someone will love it. It could happen to be one of their favorite installments. That's honestly something I love about these franchises. Yeah, we see a lot of bad discourse when it comes to films nowadays. But for every bad example, there are good examples of discourse. 

    Texas Chainsaw Massacre '22 took my expectations that I had and went against them. I went into it very much with an open mind. But I had a feeling that they were aiming for a Halloween '18 approach. That's what the trailer had me led to believe. However, this film brilliantly subverted that. When Sally returns, it's extremely interesting to see the approach that they took with this character. It's an approach that honestly feels like its tied to one of our characters, Lila. It's absolutely fantastic. 

    Oh no, the mask for Leatherface doesn't look good. That's what I have seen ever since they dropped that first look at it. However, I don't think that's true. I loved the mask. There is a reason for the mask. It's not the same mask that was featured in the original film just dilapidated to the point where it's unrecognizable. I loved what they were going for with the mask. It has a specific reason for looking the way it does. And it was pretty incredible to see the reasoning for it. 

    Leatherface is a character in this film. Some may say that he's not a good representation of what Leatherface is. I say I disagree. In the original film, Leatherface is a bit of a simple character. He is someone that is doing these things because he is told to by his family. He has been living life a certain way for a certain time. And when people come in that he perceived as threats to that life, he attacked. That was most certainly the case with that first kill in the original film. With this installment, I really loved what they did with the character. When I first saw him, I was like That's Leatherface? It plays so well against what I had expected for the character. I was thinking that it was going to be 'Oh, people trespassing. I gotta kill them.'. But no, it's interesting seeing where Leatherface's story begins in this film. It's very much not where I had expected him to be. It felt different. And I have a theory on something, if it proves to be true - it just makes the film that much deeper. 

    On to what something most people were questioning, social influencers. This was something that I thought would overshadow the film and throw it over the shark into the realm of ridiculousness. Honestly, the whole social media aspect is something that is nothing but a cliff note. At the very most, it was something that was mis-highlighted in that trailer. Again, the trailer missed the mark in my opinion. 

    I don't want to call our group of people that we follow 'kids'. That's not really what they are. Our group of characters is Melody (Sarah Yarkin), Lila (Elsie Fisher), Dante (Jacob Latimore), and Ruth (Nell Hudson). Melody and Dante are people that want to try something new. They want to be able to revitalize the small town of Harlow. Bring life back to it. After seeing the film and seeing Lila's backstory, it makes absolute sense that Melody would want to do this. Lila's story in this film was something that I didn't see coming. It caught me off guard. It felt very real. It ultimately led this film to be Lila's story - which I thought was incredible. 

    There is also the character of Richter (Moe Dunford). He's the group's contractor. He's spent time in Harlow to help bring a more presentable side to the town. At first, he comes into conflict with our group. It may have felt a small bit forced. But ultimately, I thought was handled well. 

    There is gore in this film. What Chainsaw film would it be without it? At times, it felt like it was pushing the boundary a little bit more than The Beginning. It didn't feel over-excessive. There is a reason for it. And it contributed to the story, in my opinion. 

    Honestly, the film delivers in the title. It takes place in Texas. There is a Chainsaw. There is a Massacre. It played against my expectations beautifully. I was really interested to see where they were going to go with it. It absolutely didn't disappoint. Is it perfect? No. Does it do Leatherface dirty? No. It understands the character very well and this franchise very well. Don't go into this expecting it to be Halloween '18. If that's what you're hoping it'll be, you may find yourself disappointed. It feels like it respects the original and is an anti-Halloween '18 approach. If you go in with an open mind ready for a ride, you may enjoy it. Will I return to this film for more viewings? Hell yeah. I hope that this isn't just a one and done. We have had enough of that for this franchise. Let's get more stories for Leatherface. 

Rating: 4.5 out of 5. 

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The Saw Is Family: Leatherface (2017)

 

    Welcome back, last time we took a look at Texas Chainsaw '13. Sadly that film wasn't as well received as I believe it should have been. This left Lionsgate in a bit of a bind. They had the Texas Chainsaw franchise. However, they were stuck with what to do with it. Does it sound a little familiar? I think so as it's the same issue Platinum Dunes had run into and New Line Cinema before. Honestly, how can this franchise be such a difficult thing to have things come up with? Are the studio people overthinking what to do with the films? My thoughts are probably as they just want to come up with the right equation to become successful with it. 

    So due to Texas Chainsaw 2013 being unsuccessful, Lionsgate decided to take a page out of Platinum Dunes playbook it feels like. How can we make a Chainsaw film without doing a sequel to the film that came before? Well at this point, the timeline for this branch of the franchise goes as follows: Texas Chain Saw Massacre '74 and then Texas Chainsaw '13. Personally, I would have continued with a sequel. However, Lionsgate decided that we needed a prequel to explain why Leatherface is the way he is. Basically this serves as Lionsgate's The Beginning for the Texas Chainsaw '13 timeline. 

    The studio took it upon themselves to get a new screenwriter, Seth M. Sherwood and then Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury to handle the directing duties. Now I definitely see this as Lionsgate seeing these directors having a success in the horror genre with Inside (2007) and going "Let's get them to do it. For sure, they'll be able to make this a hit.". Sherwood seemed a bit limited by what he could explore as things had to line up to an extent to what we would expect from Tobe Hooper's classic. Let's call it prequelitis if we may. 

    I enjoyed the 2013 film. When I had heard that this film was announced, I was a little unsure. I immediately asked Why? Didn't we already get an origin for a Leatherface with The Beginning? Is this playing it a little safe? Then I had seen the first poster and it had me intrigued. Then hearing what the directors were going for with something of a mystery as to who was to be Leatherface. That was a bit of a new direction, in my opinion. I had heard the synopsis for the film and it's as follows: "A teenage Leatherface escapes from a mental hospital with three other inmates, kidnapping a young nurse and taking her on a road trip from hell, while being pursued by a lawman out for revenge.". 

    Now, the lawman out for revenge was something that I was intrigued by. I knew that Stephen Dorff was going to be in the film. I remember liking him as an actor and thought could do something interesting. It did remind me a little bit of Dennis Hopper's character from Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2. It did feel like they were trying something a little different. Then all news for the film went dark. It disappeared and missed its original release date. There was no word on when the film would be release. Rumors, at first, of major reshoots happening to complete the film. Then it was said that the film was completed, but that Lionsgate was unsure of when it'd see release. That remained for a year. It finally saw its release in 2017 to DirectTV streaming at first. Then it'd eventually make its way to a physical release, but many weren't impressed. It felt too little too late for the film. 

    I remember when I first sat down to watch the film. I was interested. Seeing the continuity details, however small they be, connecting this film to Chain Saw '74 and then to 3D. It was really interesting how they formed a trilogy of sorts. I thought it was a bit of a ballsy move. But I still managed to enjoy it. I enjoyed a lot of the cast in this film. Thought that they all had decent performances. For some reason, I couldn't help but finding myself enjoying it. And I even enjoyed the way that they introduced Leatherface into the film. Was it who I thought it was going to be? No, not by a long shot. I immediately was sure it was going to be their big red herring as to who Leatherface was going to be. I mean it makes a lot of sense because of 'who' Leatherface typically is. Usually, Leatherface is always portrayed as a big beast. So for some smaller person that was renamed Jackson to become Leatherface? I was open-minded. Do I think that there is maybe a sequence that was a little over excessive? Yeah, I do. But like I have mentioned before in this series, there is something I manage to like about each of the films. And that's something I can't say about most horror franchises. 

    If you manage to go in with an open mind, you may find yourself enjoying Leatherface '17. Do I think it gets a lot of hate? Yeah, I think it does. I think a large part is because it was honestly given up on by both the studio as well as audiences already dismissing it. 

Rating: 4 out of 5. 

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The Saw Is Family: Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)

     

    Hello everyone, we are almost there. Texas Chainsaw Massacre '22 is almost upon us. One more day till we can see it on Netflix. I am really interested in seeing what they did with it. And I can definitely say that tomorrow I'll have my thoughts on the film as soon as possible because we all know that I don't get much sleep and am up by 4 am anyway. 

    After Platinum Dunes' success with their two Chainsaw films, they ultimately had written themselves into a corner. There was absolutely no way that they could have continued the story. Well, I more or less was able to figure out ways that they could have done so. But they were just done with Chainsaw. They thought themselves as above it and were focusing on revitalizing other horror brands. So, they let the rights go and with it Leatherface went dormant for a time.

    Lionsgate, Millennium Films, and Mainline Pictures ended up getting ready to make an installment as Lionsgate had secured the rights. At that point, they were trying to figure out how they could potentially bring Leatherface back to the big screen. Horror was undergoing another shift in what was big at the time like we see from time to time. Originally, a plan for a new trilogy was pitched. The films would be released out of chronological order, with the second film coming out first and being set almost entirely in a hospital. The next film would be a prequel explaining the events that led up to the hospital scenario. The third film would complete the storyline. Fearing it was too ambitious and risky, the producers opted for a follow up to the original instead. Now that I know this information it kind of makes a little more sense as to where they ended up going with this installment.

    They ended up bringing in Adam Marcus, who we know from the superb Jason Goes to Hell, and his wife Debra Sullivan to figure out the story for Texas Chainsaw. What they came up with was enough to sell the studio on the film and had impressed Tobe Hooper. It was a direct sequel to the original. It had a proper timeline and had the story take place in the 90s. The whole goal of that script was to explore Leatherface's relationship to his family and fill out some more of the mythology. That honestly sounds like a solid approach to me. So what had happened between that script and the finished film? 

    Well, I have a very strong feeling that studio meddling occurred. They brought in Kirsten Elms and director John Luessenhop to take another crack at the script. It was during this time that they shifted the film to take place in the present day. Why did this need to be? It didn't. I can just hear the studio head saying "It's got to be set in modern day because kids won't notice any small details. It's got to feel fresh. Oh, kids these days have their fancy phones. Throw something in there with a phone.". Thus, we got a whole sequence with an officer and his cell phone. And it does go down from there the more you think about it. 

    Ultimately, this is why I shut my brain off when watching this film. While they were going for monster film approach, it honestly feels like a blockbuster popcorn horror film. It's something to throw on for background noise from time to time. Just try not to think on things too much. 

    I remember in the buildup to see Texas Chainsaw 3D, I was pretty excited. I mean getting to see Leatherface on a big screen was nice. I ended up winning a contest and scoring two tickets to see it in 3D. So, I ended up going to see the film twice in the theater. And with those two watches, I found myself enjoying Texas Chainsaw. Was it a solid film? I honestly don't think so. There were just so many times that I found myself questioning what was happening in the story. I mean if Alexandria Dadarrio just listened and read the note, the film would have been over. Come on, just listen to the old man. I also didn't enjoy any of her friends. Outside of the chef, the rest of the group felt like garbage people. I mean come on, her boyfriend is screwing around with what's supposed to be her 'best friend'. And then when they were attacked, Dadarrio still tried to save that friend. She was better than at least three out of the four. It kind of felt like they were just trying to pile things on for Dadarrio's character to the point where she could just fuckin snap. And honestly where the film goes with that, it makes sense. It's just sad how it gets there. 

    One thing that I didn't mind is that opening with the Sawyer family. I mean we get Bill Moseley as Drayton Sawyer this time around. That was something that honestly had me wishing we could have had more time with this family. We also get to see Gunnar Hansen as another member of the Sawyers. It was interesting getting to see what the consequences were of that first film. I mean it ultimately led the Sawyers to be massacred themselves. The whole character of Verna Carson was one that I enjoyed. Knowing that this was Marilyn Burns, who played Sally in the original, was so interesting. It added such a beautiful layer to the film. 

    Outside of the family story and what I have mentioned already, the rest of the film just doesn't work. Is it exciting? Nah. Is it entertaining? Yes, in a I'mma turn my brain off to enjoy this kind of way. I was really interested as to where the story could have gone next with that end-credit sequence. It set up something interesting with the idea of Dadarrio taking care of Leatherface. Would I have been interested in that film? Yeah. 

    I think the biggest disappointment was that the studio had changed Adam Marcus and Debra Sullivan's initial story. What could have that story been like? I honestly am really wishing that we could see that one made. No script changes to it. That script entirely. 

    So I guess, in conclusion, if you are looking for a film that's something for background noise. Check this out. 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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It Came From The Dollar Tree: Cheap Thrills (2013)

 

    Welcome back to It Came From The Dollar Tree! Yesterday, I had the pleasure of checking out The Devil's Candy (2013). It was a hell of a watch. It also was a film that definitely showed a different side of Ethan Embry's acting chops. 

    Today, I have the pleasure of checking out another film featuring Ethan Embry, Cheap Thrills. Cheap Thrills was released in 2013 from Drafthouse Films. The film was written by David Chirchirillo and Trent Haag. The film was the directorial debut of E. L. Katz. 

    The synopsis for the film is as follows "A scheming couple put a struggling family man and his old friend through a series of increasingly twisted dares over the course of an evening at a local bar.". It's an incredibly simple concept. However, I spent a little bit of time thinking about the film. Mostly about a theme of the movie. How far would you go just to make money? How far would you let it take you? Would you lose yourself in your pursuit of the money? Would you let the pursuit of said money effect a friendship? Would you let that pursuit turn you into something your not? These are all the questions that I found myself thinking about during the runtime of the film. 

    A theme that struck me for the film is that its about humanity. In the beginning, we are introduced to Craig (Pat Healy) - a man that is literally down on his luck. He was once a writer, but now is forced to work at a car shop. He's happy with his family, but things are coming down on them because they are having difficulties making ends meet. They are on their last legs with potentially being evicted. And then the icing on this shit cake for Craig is losing his job. This whole situation is just one that's extremely relatable. He's trying his hardest to figure out a way of this hole he's found himself in. But ask and you shall receive, he has the chance to go home. But he's ashamed of things, so he goes to the bar. 

    At the bar, he ends up seeing an old friend - Vince (Ethan Embry). They seem like good friends. It's that bit of awkwardness of running into someone that you haven't seen in like forever. They end up reminiscing a bit and shooting the shit. But then they meet up with a couple (David Koechner and Sara Paxton) and find themselves trapped in a night that will change their lives forever. They will go through so much shit - all in the pursuit of money to appease this couple. During the course of the night, they find themselves asking those same questions I mentioned before. 

    The cast in this film is fantastic. Each and every one of them bring their A-game. Ethan Embry delivers a solid performance as that one guy that you used to know and be friends with - but underneath there's a lot of shit just bubbling. Pat Healy is the world's punching bag basically. He goes through such a wringer that I kept saying that it was time for him to just go home to his family. David Koechner is amazing as always. For the longest time, I didn't know who he was as an actor. I just remember seeing him pop up from time to time. But he just has such fantastic comedic timing. And then there's Sara Paxton. In this film, she is completely playing against type. Typically, we usually see her not in a villainous role. She's quiet and reserved while manipulating all of the events in the film for own amusement. 

    The 'games' that occur in this film start relatively simple. $100 for taking a shot. Or $200 for holding your breath. However, the deeper the rabbit hole goes. The more bizarre and out there it goes. To the point where there was one challenge that is asked of Craig and Vince that I had to look away. It was just too gross at that point. And I definitely disagree that something would taste like chicken. 

    In the end, Cheap Thrills is a very intriguing film when you dive beneath the surface of it. It is bold and doesn't pull its punches whatsoever. I would recommend it if you can find it. If have the opportunity of buying the DVD, absolutely for the commentary track alone as it opens the film up even more. 

Rating: 4 out of 5. 

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The Saw Is Family: Texas Chainsaw Massacre '03 (2003)

 

    Welcome back to The Saw Is Family. Last time, we took a look at Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. I know the next film in line was supposed to be The Next Generation. But as of right now, I have not been able to find a copy of it. The plan is to try and find a copy soon. Fingers crossed with that. So instead, I thought it'd be time to move on to the Platinum Dunes's first Chainsaw. 

    2003. Hard to believe that it's almost been 20 years now. It honestly feels like just year to me. I was a freshman in high school. I remember a couple of my classmates had been talking about Texas Chainsaw Massacre one weekend. They were really excited about it. And then I recall hearing their reactions at school on Monday, the film was scary. They said it was really good and scary. This was something that caught my attention. At that point in life, I remember horror films were still on the verge of making a comeback after the late 90s. I had seen the trailers. But I knew my Dad wasn't going to take me to go see it. I didn't have my license yet nor anyone that I would be interested in going to see the film with. So, I had to wait till the film was released on Pay-Per-View. It honestly felt like it was a long wait. Through those few months, I kept hearing from friends that I needed to see Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It fueled an expectation that I had for the film. 

    Then the day came when it arrived on Pay-Per-View, my Dad was going to be watching a football game. I asked him if I could get Texas Chainsaw Massacre to watch it. He agreed. That afternoon I watched it. And for the life of me, I couldn't understand what my friends were talking about. This was scary? Maybe in a theater setting with an audience it would have worked differently. But in a living room with the shades drawn, the film just wasn't scary to me. It felt like it was padded with its runtime. The things that were supposed to be scary just weren't working. It was overrated in my opinion and had missed the mark. I found it to be dull and I was unimpressed.

    But then something changed, I remember going to our local K-Mart. At that time, we didn't yet have a Wal-Mart in my hometown. So unless one travelled an hour to Port Huron or 40 minutes to Bad Axe or Caro, K-Mart was your stop. On the video shelf among the new DVD releases, there sat the 2 Disc Collectors Edition of Texas Chainsaw Massacre '03 with its red metal plate featuring the artwork of Leatherface holding his chainsaw. When my Dad was ready to go, he found me in the Entertainment section holding the set. I used my allowance to get it. He had asked me "Why I was interested in that? Didn't you watch it before and not like it?". I explained that maybe I was wrong and that I could like it. I don't think he really understood it. But I came home with that set. 

    I remember a lot of people kept asking me what I wanted to do after high school. 'What's your plans?' was the big question that loomed over me. I kept saying that I wanted to talk about movies. I was extremely interested in how movies were made. The whole process still fascinates me. Whenever I get a chance to check out behind the scenes looks at films or commentaries, I jump at it. It's just so interesting hearing how a film is made and what are the many processes that it goes through. One of the big things that fueled my passion for film-making is that Texas Chainsaw Massacre set. It has a whole hour and sixteen minute documentary on the making of it, as well as three different commentary tracks. I remember that weekend I watched all of those features so many times. 

    Did the Special Features help change my opinion of the film? Absolutely. It gave me such a better understanding of what they were going for. I understand that some films probably shouldn't need their Special Features to help one understand more about the film. But this was a case that it helped me get more in the mindset of what they were going for. And I grew to have a large appreciation for the film. 

    It's not trying to be the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. There was no way that they could do that. I mean they could, take a look at Psycho 1998. That wouldn't be successful nor would it work. But if they were set on it, they could still do it. But they were trying to tone down the humor that was evident in the original film. This is a film that is a horror movie first and foremost. Gone is the documentary feel of the original. I mean we did get Daniel Pearl back to give this film a distinct look. He did a pretty fantastic job of differentiating it from the original. Marcus Nispel does a solid job with directing the film. Could it have been trimmed a little more? Chances are yes. But for the most part once I understood what they were going for, the film didn't feel like a total slog of a film. 

    It does a solid job of re-establishing Leatherface as well as establishing the Hewitt Family. And what a family it is. I mean R. Lee Ermey as Sheriff Hoyt is such fantastic casting. Andrew Byrnarski does do a solid job of a menacing Leatherface. But ultimately, he feels a little bit held back. He could have and should have been more. But it's a solid start.  Could we have used some more scenes and interactions between Leatherface and the rest of the family? Hell yes. I mean come on, why didn't we get a scene with Momma and Leatherface? That would have been fantastic. The part where I think the film falters is where it ends up. Leatherface is injured and on the run from police? Hoyt is potentially dead? They never do address what happened to the other members of the family. It all feels a little surface level, if that makes sense. If they had time and a chance to delve deeper into the characters after the events of this film, it'd be interesting. I know we get The Beginning and we'll get there. 

    I do find Leatherface's mask to be creepy. It's a little unsettling to look at. But he makes a Kemper mask and uses it in one scene. Why? Why go to that length to do that for just one scene? I would have appreciated it so much more if he had gone on to use it for the remainder of the film. You could have shown it becoming damaged and a bit more worn down. Instead, the mask gets thrown away after the van scene. 

    Why is it always wet in this film? That's something that really irked me. Everything is wet. The walls. The floors. The meat factory sequence. The whole amount of rain in that last few moments. Did we really need it to be so wet? I may be ranting, but come on they could have done better. 

    There were a few things that were deleted that intrigued me. The whole alternate opening and ending of the film - it focuses on an interview with Present Day Erin in an Asylum. That was something that was vastly different. I don't get why they decided to open and close with the police investigating the Hewitt House in Black and White. Trying a little too hard for the documentary feel with that sequence, in my opinion. It clashes with the whole aesthetic of the film. There was a subplot with Erin being pregnant with Kemper's child. Why was this taken out? Because Erin goes through the frickin ringer and is beaten down so much that chances are she'd lose the baby? Honestly, it adds a bit more depth to things. 

    I get that maybe I'm being a bit too hard on the '03 remake. Is it bad? No, it's not really bad. It's actually pretty good and interesting. I would definitely say that it's one of the better Texas Chainsaw films in this franchise. If you need your Leatherface fix, I'd say give this a watch.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5. 

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The Saw Is Family: Texas Chainsaw Massacre The Beginning (2006)

 

    Are you still with us? Here we are, four films deep into the Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise. It's been an interesting experience. I have done this before, but this is the first time viewing the films in a more critical way. Last time, we took a look at Texas Chainsaw Massacre '03 from Marcus Nispel and Platinum Dunes. It was an interesting, more serious take on the story. But one downside was that it felt like they had used up everything in one film. Interesting thing is if it was made today, they wouldn't have thrown all the eggs in one basket would they?

    After the success of the 2003 Texas Chainsaw Massacre, people were asking for more Leatherface. The large question I remember asking was How in the hell could you do a sequel? Well, you don't go all in on a sequel. That would have been too much of a risk for them probably. I mean if you're going to do another Chainsaw, you have to make sure you have a solid story right? That's what Michael Bay, Andrew Form and Brad Fuller were all saying in the Behind the Scenes. So what do you do? 

    Well, there was a time in Hollywood where it felt like prequels were all the rage. You make a movie and it's successful. How else can you explore that world? Well, if you don't want to do a sequel - you do a prequel. I mean George Lucas did it with Star Wars and that went well, right? Platinum Dunes sure thought so as they developed The Beginning. 

    It's a film that's set three years prior to the 2003 remake and gives fans more of what they thought was interesting about that film - the Family. I mean that's what worked really well about that previous film. But sometimes going back to tell a story can be a hinderance. It writes you into a corner potentially. You're not getting to develop the characters further, you're adding more personalities to them that would hopefully carry over into the subsequent film in the timeline. So then what's the point?

    Now, it may seem like I'm just shitting on TCM: The Beginning. I actually really like it a lot, probably more than the remake if I'm honest. The brothers and their girlfriends are all solid characters. The way that each of them play off of one another in the scenes before they meet the Hewitts is interesting. There is a bit more depth with these characters when compared to the kids from the remake. They are all more likeable. I found myself caring for what was going to happen to them. I wanted someone to be able to make it out of the film alive. However, that's one of the big problems. It's set three years prior to the remake. Leatherface is still out there and no one is fully aware of him yet. Therefore, no one can make it out. Personally, I would have had Jordana Brewster make it out and then she could have been so terrified and PTSD from this situation that she would have went in to hiding. It would have also set up the possibility of using the character if they had wished to bring them back in a sequel to the remake. You could have also brought back Jessica Biel for that said sequel if interested. But instead, we got the easy way out. 

    Being this is a prequel, we also have to establish how Leatherface was born for some reason. This was something that I felt we didn't need. We could have had Luda Mae find Leatherface still or something. But instead we are shown the birth of Leatherface on the Meat Factory floor because plot. One of the things that I do appreciate is seeing how Sheriff Hoyt became the 'Sheriff'. It adds a lot of depth to an already colorful character. I mean now it makes things even more out there considering Hoyt spent three years in this newfound 'job'. When one thinks more about it, would it have been plausible? Honestly, it probably would have because there is practically no 'town' nearby them. My question though is Was the gas station something that they had owned and run before? Was it a family owned business for the Hewitts? Or did they take that over like Hoyt had taken the position of Sheriff? Moving on, we have Luda Mae, Uncle Monty, and the Tea Lady. I honestly don't think we get enough with these characters. They kind of are just there going along with things. Hoyt barks Monty to clear up the car accident and such. But outside of getting his legs cut off, is there a point for Monty? Yeah cause of plot. He didn't have his legs and we need to see how he lost them. Luda Mae goes along with things cause she believes in Hoyt? That's what we're saying? I just wish they had more with the characters. And as for the Tea Lady, ultimately she's like an easter egg for those that had watched the remake. She serves the purpose of being shoved up against the door and blocking it at one point. 

    The cinematography for The Beginning kind of works. Does it work in tone with the remake? No. It absolutely does not. Yeah, it's supposed to tie in to that film. But compared to the remake, The Beginning is full of hot warm lighting. It's an absolute stark contrast to that 2003 remake. But I guess that's probably the point. But honestly, it doesn't allow the two films to gel together very well. 

    Blood and gore? Yeah, The Beginning is not afraid to show everything. I remember going to see this at the theater and being astounded at how much they were getting to show on the screen. And then watching the Uncut Version later when it hit DVD, holy crap. It just expands on the gore. But an interesting thing about that version is that it does add some small things to the plot. They may be small and it mostly focuses on restoring the gore to its full glory, but it honestly does add a bit. Something that was interesting about the Behind the Scenes on that DVD is seeing the work put into the effects from KnB. They did an astounding job. It's a great sight to see physical effects being done on screen vs. computer doing everything. 

    While I loved The Beginning, I don't find that it works too well with the 2003 film. It works better as its own standalone because of the continuity issues between the two films. I mean Leatherface is said to be suffering from a skin eating disease in the 2003 film, yet he's not that far gone in The Beginning. And that's with a three year gap between the two films. If they hadn't shown Leatherface unmasked in the 2003 film, it would have helped immensely. The Beginning also was written into a corner by having to make sure that things line up with the 2003 film and it does feel it a little bit. It does have memorable characters though everyone is doomed to die. 

Rating: 4.25 out of 5. 

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