The Texas Chainsaw Massacre slowly became a personal favorite. Again, I grew up in that weird generational cross-section where Part III was the one in theaters when kids first start getting into horror. When fighting with Voorhees and Krueger, the Sawyer family came up short. Years would pass and TCM co-creator Kim Henkel would get a chance to spoof what had came before. While not outright funny, it would subvert the slasher/terror cult that took over American Horror for 20+ years.
What makes The Next Generation so special is that it’s so easy to misinterpret. Many early Horror critics and later writers see the film has a hateful slapback at everything that was birthed by Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The subplot of Rothman and the religious experience of the secret society is pretty novel, but ultimately misses the point of the original. It wasn’t that the Sawyers or Slaughters or whatever wanted to scare people into being better.
These were savage highwaymen fighting against civilization to keep their savage ways alive. It’s the fear of the unknown South and other less urban areas. Those remote holes and communities filled with the people that don’t want you to see them coming. The same elements from the first film are present here. However, too many ideas are left to roam the film without ever finding a point. Yes, we get that Leatherface dresses in drag. More was done with it in 1973 than was used in 1994.
Great ideas are great ideas, but they have to stick to something. The film deserved better from SONY, but it also needed another draft. Not really sure who to blame here.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation special features
- Two Cuts Of The Film – The Theatrical Cut (87 Minutes – HD) And The Director’s Cut (93 Minutes – HD With Standard Definition Inserts)
- NEW Audio Commentary With Writer/Director Kim Henkel (On Director’s Cut)
- NEW The Buzz Is Back – An Interview With Director Of Photography Levie Isaacks
- NEW Marked For Death – An Interview With Actor Tyler Shea Cone
- NEW If Looks Could Kill: The Return Of A “Chainsaw Massacre” – An Interview With Special Makeup Effects Artist J.M. Logan And Production Designer Deborah Pastor
- Theatrical Trailer
SCREENSHOTS!
