MOVIE REVIEW . Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning

by Chris   ⋅   October 8, 2006   ⋅   Comment now   ⋅    RSS

So The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning is out and the reviews are about as one could have expected. Mainstream critics don’t care for horror movies, nor do they care for prequels, and certainly not horror prequels for horror remakes. Their outraged cries of the disgusting and disturbing nature of these films never fail to miss the point. These films are supposed to make you feel disgusted and disturbed. And Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning delivers those good old “uncomfortabilities” in spades. But when evaluated for what it is, as a horror film, is it any good?

Being the 6th Chainsaw picture, the plot is pretty much a given, though this time the focus of the film is on the origins of Leatherface and his family, rather than focusing entirely on the bratty batch of road-tripping youngsters (this time a quartet of blondes and brunettes). We see the birth of Leatherface, his acquisition of his trusty chainsaw, and his metamorphosis from cattle butcher to human butcher. Likewise we see the rise of R Lee Ermey’s “sheriff,” and the initial donning of his brass shield. The film takes a darkly comic approach in handling these characters, and oftentimes you find yourself laughing guiltily at some of their sick and twisted antics. It’s an interesting approach, as these characters are immediately compelling. Although unbelievably cruel and decidedly crazed, they’re completely lucid, operating on a moral roadmap long since abandoned by the rest of the world. It’s far more interesting to watch than the crassly idiotic rantings of Rob Zombie’s Firefly family.

As a thriller the film is remarkably intense. While the film abides near completely to the tried and true horror formula, it’s not afraid to play with our expectations. Screenwriter Sheldon Turner seems to have a gleefully sadistic streak; often times those characters we expect to live the longest prove the first to die, in the most unmerciful ways possible. Jordana Brewster plays the film’s final girl about as well as could be expected. While nice to look at, and certainly sells the suspense, she’s not particularly compelling. But, as mentioned above, the film is not really about her, or her group of companions.

Despite all the grisly goings-on there’s actually quite a bit of substance to be found in this Texas Chainsaw. There are nods to other landmark films of the late 60’s and 70’s, including Easy Rider and Apocalypse Now, and, believe it or not, there’s quite a bit of commentary for a contemporary horror film. The repulsive sheriff is a product of the oft-forgotten Korean War, a crazed Christian soldier with an appetite for torture, and human flesh. Likewise there are nods at the current state of right-wing conservative hypocracy, the family stopping to say grace before a meal of massacred teenager, and their outraged condemnation of our trusty final girl for a muttered blaspheme. The teenagers of the film are once again reduced to meat, treated exactly as the cattle of the slaughterhouse, though I must admit most people won’t think twice about chowing down on a Big Mac following this film.

But, with all that said, Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, doesn’t really bring anything new to the series. Sure, it’s relentlessly intense, but the purported revelations regarding Leatherface and his origins aren’t exactly that. The fact that it is a prequel often preempts scenes of the teenagers’ fighting back of their suspense, as you know there’s no way they can best a baddie who appears in the next film. The Beginning joins its predecessor as being one of the best looking films in the series, but as far as Chainsaw Massacres are concerned, this may actually be the most forgettable.

About the Author

Chris Nelson has been a film fanatic since age six. A former film and English major, he is now a Java Developer and contract Technical Writer living in the Silicon Valley.

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