The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

This movie is meant to be brutal, dirty, disgusting, awe inspiring, and terrifying. It succeeds on being each and evry one. The movie, once it "picks up" is unrelenting, suspensful, and leaves you with an uneasy feeling. There is such a stong sense of hopelesness throughout the second half, such negative emotions are elicited without so much as a second of comic relief. Yes, there is some comedy, but its all in the first third or so of the movie. The movie drags for a bit at the beginning, but once it all begins, its some scary s**t. I am an avid horror movie fan, I watch everything that comes out. Nothing has really scraed me, at least not in years. This movie scared the crap out of me. I actually wanted to turn away at one point. I wanted to run, I had second thoughts, kind of like being on a rollercoaster for the first time. I left the theater with an uneasy feeling. I couldn't stop laughing nervously, I guess I was trying to cope with what I had seen. My girlfriend was absolutely terrified. Two girls behind us were literally crying becuase they were so terrified. All around us people were screaming, jumping, squirming. After the movie, everyone was saying "that was the scariest movie I have ever seen" and "that was nuts." I couldn't agree more. This movie really, actually, truly scared me. It was just so brutal. I felt terrified for the victims; I felt afraid of the villian (Leatherface was awesome). I loved this movie. It obvioulsy has flaws. The beginning was slow, there were like thirty "jump scares," people walked around exploring stuff alone, etc etc. But this movie, if judged based on how much it did what it intended to do, gets a 10 out of 10. Easy. I thought this remake was going to be easy to stomach, I figured it was going to be "hollywoodized." I was dead wrong. This movie was insane, period.

Let's face it. There aren't, if any, good horror classic remakes. Good horror movies are not supposed to be remade, period. However, there are some remakes that come pretty close to "good" remakes, (such as The Ring) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of them. I watched this movie alone in the dark at midnight, with my DTS surround sound speakers, and it scared the HELL out of me! This movie intends to makes you feel damp, filthy and frightening. It takes itself very seriously, no jokes. The horror is non-stop, not allowing you to take a break. The fright and the gore satisfies most horror fans. Good style, good cinematography, well-directed. Of course, this movie cannot be compared to the original, but this is a pretty damn good horror movie itself.

Not bad for a re-make of course it didn't have quite the impact of the original. It did a decent job building tension and there was a darker atmosphere to the location, made it seem more nightmarish.

Obviously the film had some advantages from a bigger budget, and R. Lee Ermey is definitely worth watching. As for the family, you had an almost twisted take on 'the dirty south', or in this case southwest, people being more bizarre caricatures, but with the darker and more atmospheric setting it works.

Interstingly, it seems to lack the social commentary of the original, but that is very common with remakes these days. Though there is extensive use of rather effective foreshadowing in numerous scenes.

It is very safe to say that the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre(1974) was a cultural phenomenon for horror movies and helped change the shape of the entire genre. The movie provided all the essential elements that are vital in horror movies because when it comes down to it, these elements come from what the people want to see. We want to see the twisted things in our imaginations and nightmares come to life and what I love about TCM is it is something that could really happen to you. Sure the movie is a little cheesy now and I think Franklin was hilarious, but its the direction that counts. To me Leatherface is the greatest killer of all time, I like him better than Freddy. I love him because he is very stripped down, he's not supernatural and reacts to pain like any normal human would. He has all the essentials such as a very creepy image and psychotic behavior. Nobody can hold a candle to Leatherface.

Ok enough of that, let me get on to the review of the REAL Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I will not say anything about the story because I want everyone to see it for themselves while knowing very little about the story. It takes a lot for a movie to impress me when the anticipation level is hitting the sky because I expect so much and usually always get disappointed, this happened with Terminator 3. With the "new" TCM, it stays true to the roots that made the first one a hit, but this one BLEW me away.

Lets start with the cast. Everyone was amazing and fit in perfectly. I had doubts about Jessica Biels at first but now I see her in a brand new light. I could see no ounce of weakness in any of the characters. The moods expressed throughout the movie were flawless and very convincing. The acting plays a huge role because the better the acting, the more real the feel is, thats when you step into the shoes of the people in the movie and live it out with them. This is what makes and breaks movies and I'm proud to say the cast delivered.

The story line has been totally changed. This story is 100 times better than the original, I was very impressed. There are far more twists and turns and because the storyline has such a high thrill value, it keeps you glued to your seat. Our theater was packed and only 2 people that I know of left for bathroom breaks. I have never seen this happen before with a movie. Anyway, the storyline could not have gotten any better. One reviewer said some of the stuff in the movie was predictable, that is total BS, this movie has so many turns that you have no idea whats going to happen next.

Now onto the star of the movie, LEATHERFACE. I thought nobody could top Gunnar Hansen from the first TCM but Leatherface in the new one is the best one I have ever seen. He is bigger, scarier, meaner, and crazier than ever. He is the main focus as far as enemies go and I think its great, this pretty much paid tribute to him and it shows everyone that he is the guy to be reckoned with. The moment he did the first kill I knew this movie was ON and had a feeling it would top any slasher movie ever made.

In closing let me say that when this movie ended, A LOT of people started clapping and cheering. I saw no disappointed faces leaving that theater and this was the first movie ever in which my high anticipation was exceeded, let alone met. I don't care what ANYONE says, the original, while still a classic and will always be in our hearts, can't even come close to this one. Storyline, imagery, jump scenes, kills, twists etc.., this movie has it ALL and leaves a lasting impression strong enough to make you want to go pay $7.50 all over again and again and again until you get sick of it. Michael Bay, a lot of people doubted you when you signed on to this but I always defended you and let me say, I know you have shut all those people up. Job well done!

For a slasher horror movie, it has everything - group of friends, iconic killer, interesting kills, creepy atmosphere and jump scares. Plus, there is a great cinematography, acting is good, and it doesn't look cheap. I think it's very underrated, people are expecting Oscar worthy movie for a slasher. It isn't and it isn't trying to be. Along with Wrong turn, Jeepers Creepers, it's a classic slasher horror movie of the early 2000s. I remember watching these and many other horrors in the early 2000s with friends, renting dvd movies all summer and watching together... it was so much fun. Unlike movies today (neither better nor worse), that recognizable vibe of the movies 15-20 years ago is lost, but not forgotten.