Texas Chainsaw Massacre

As the title suggests, Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a gore-soaked, ruthlessly effective slasher that doesn't waste any time in starting the slaughter. The much-discussed party bus scene, in which Leatherface methodically murders a busload of social media influencers in a breathtakingly gory manner, is one of the kills that director David Blue Garcia arranges with visceral intensity. The aged Leatherface is portrayed by Mark Burnham with a lumbering, melancholy physicality, and the film's short 81 minutes make sure the action never slows down. Franchise fans will value the return of Sally Hardesty (Olwen Fouéré), the only survivor from Tobe Hooper's 1974 original, while Elsie Fisher's Lila, who was traumatized by a previous school shooting, adds an unexpected emotional texture to the conventional final girl archetype. The cinematography occasionally achieves genuine beauty, particularly in the sunflower field sequences, and the practical gore effects satisfy the hardcore horror crowd without descending into CGI overkill.

The film's haphazard effort at social commentary, which jumbles influencer culture, gun control, and gentrification without a clear point of view or significant conclusion, is where it falls short. Characters stroll alone into dark buildings, ignore clear danger signals, and fail to use firearms at crucial situations. The script is extremely clumsy, even by slasher standards, and is filled with aggressively unlikable victims who make incredibly foolish decisions that stretch credulity. Sally and Leatherface's much-anticipated showdown feels unimpressive and squanders the chance to revive such a legendary figure. Furthermore, the film's tonal shift between satirical comedy and deadly violence never completely works, and the last act devolves into cliched chase scenes that lack the originality of the earlier set pieces. While Texas Chainsaw Massacre succeeds as a blood-soaked diversion for genre enthusiasts, it ultimately offers nothing substantial to distinguish itself in a crowded field of legacy sequels, settling for competent execution rather than genuine reinvention.

Staff:

Directed by: David Blue Garcia

Screenplay by: Chris Thomas Devlin

Story by: Fede Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues

Based on: Characters by Kim Henkel and Tobe Hooper

Produced by: Fede Álvarez, Herbert W. Gains, Kim Henkel, Ian Henkel, and Pat Cassidy

Starring: Sarah Yarkin, Elsie Fisher, Mark Burnham, Moe Dunford, Nell Hudson, Jessica Allain, Olwen Fouéré, Jacob Latimore, and Alice Krige.

Cinematography: Ricardo Diaz

Edited by: Christopher S. Capp

Music by: Colin Stetson

Production companies: Legendary Pictures and Bad Hombre

Distributed by: Netflix

Release date: February 18, 2022

Running time: 83 minutes