Canetoad
The Prodigal Toad
HMaM member of the Month, July 2006
Cry Havoc! And let slip the cats of war.
Posts: 2,868
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Post by Canetoad on Nov 26, 2006 7:11:28 GMT -5
I hope it's a very short review!
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Post by GL on Dec 28, 2006 12:03:12 GMT -5
“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation” is far better than it’s reputation has given it.
**SPOILERS**
After a disastrous night at their prom, students Jenny, (Renee Zellweger) Sean, (John Harrison) Barry, (Tyler Cone) and Heather, (Lisa Marie Newmyer) get stranded on a dirt road and ask local Darla, (Tonie Perensky) for help. Making their way through the woods back to wait for Vilmer, (Matthew McConaughey) they wind up lost in the surrounding woods. When they’re taken back to their house, they are eventually captured by Leatherface, (Robert Jacks) and W.E., (Joe Stevens) and the rest of their family. Gathering up her strength and courage, the dwindling group is forced to fight off the family before they are all killed.
The Good News: There is an incredible amount to like here. Perhaps one of the best features is that it’s a loving tribute to the original but changes them around enough to really get a sense of it being something new. The opening twist is pretty nice, changing the funeral trip to a prom night disaster, which is pretty nice. The chainsaw chase is still the highlight here, and while not being as intense as before, it’s still a real spectacular action set-piece, taking a generally similar approach while altering events to a degree to be a winking nod to the ones before while also being new in it’s own right. The dinner table sequence makes a nice come-back, and is, if not as psychologically disturbing, just as edgy and confronting. It’s still a must-see experience in the film. Also quite impressive is the sequence where the victims are dragged to the kitchen to be stored away for later. It’s an incredibly long, drawn-out sequence that is as disturbing as it gets, and it should rightfully be so in that situation. It’s played for what it should’ve been, a really intense unflinching experience and it’s all the better for it for having done so in that fashion. The film is incredibly suspenseful, and this is nowhere more apparent than in the opening stages. The forest setting given to the action is enormously menacing, almost from the start. The very low light, the constant fog that drapes the ground, and the fact that they just pop up in there out of nowhere really warps the mind. The sequence where they encounter a truck driving down the road and chase off into the darkness after it while only one stays on the normal path is full of tension and dread. Along the chase, this was the real highlight scene, and a strong contender is the opening murder. Having the victim chased down the road by a huge monster truck with blaring lights shining up the location and what eventually happens is quite a breathtaking action scene that really sticks out in the movie. Even more impressive is the gang-banger pace to the film. It rushes along from one even to another in a heartbeat, with the eventual capture around the fifty minute mark, allowing for plenty of time to be tortured in the house, and that also leaves the beginning to be a completely whirlwind experience. Add these together, and this has the makings of an underrated gem.
The Bad News: While it’s a true hidden gem, there are a couple of nagging problems in this one. The most obvious one is that Leatherface has been severely diminished in status for the film. He’s barely in the film at all, and when he is on-screen, he’s really ineffective. The sequence of him taking the two friends out to be killed is twice as long as it should’ve been, as they keep escaping and getting recaptured. The mask itself is a real disappointment from the clever and original one in the previous film, and the sad fact that he had to wear a mask and outfit that made it seem like he was a drag queen isn’t all that frightening. As is common practice for the series, there’s really no body count here, and this in turn really reduces the gore in here. It’s got some suspenseful scenes to help out, but the lack of gore on display is really frightening. The new family doesn’t do much to help out, and at times they’re not at all that edge to them that previous ones had. As such, the fact that it also changes some of the original’s magic is a big misstep, and depending on how far an individual’s perspective of that is, it’s quite damaging to the original. The ending is also pretty hard to figure out and really doesn’t do much to help with the explanations of anything. These work against it, but it’s nowhere near as bad as it could’ve been.
The Final Verdict: A fun, if unoriginal romp through familiar territory, this is a really wrongly maligned film that deserves to be viewed objectively. It’s not the best film in the genre, and it really wasn’t pretending to be. If you can view films in that manner, give it a shot, but steer clear if that doesn’t sound like you.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence and Brief Nudity
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Post by The Walking Dude on Mar 17, 2007 7:49:32 GMT -5
How come there is no option for zero out of five?even the remake looks good compared to this Tobe Hooper was obviously the one with the talent.
Actually i'll give this a point for including a Roky Erickson song
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Canetoad
The Prodigal Toad
HMaM member of the Month, July 2006
Cry Havoc! And let slip the cats of war.
Posts: 2,868
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Post by Canetoad on Mar 19, 2007 6:48:09 GMT -5
Don't get me started on this one.
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Post by CK on Mar 19, 2007 6:58:26 GMT -5
Yeah toadie loves this flick!
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Post by GL on Mar 19, 2007 12:33:35 GMT -5
Did you even read my review, Toad. I thought you would've absolutely loved it.
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Canetoad
The Prodigal Toad
HMaM member of the Month, July 2006
Cry Havoc! And let slip the cats of war.
Posts: 2,868
|
Post by Canetoad on Mar 19, 2007 19:43:42 GMT -5
Toads are very polite creatures mate.
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Post by Jen on Mar 19, 2007 19:59:28 GMT -5
I don't hate it, but at the same time I recognize that it is a pretty awful horror film. There was one thing I really liked about it. Matthew McConaughey was obviously having a lot of fun while making this movie , and its kind of contagious in a way. I like how completely he threw himself into this role. So I enjoyed parts of it. Overall, though, EEK..... I will give it a two.
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Post by CT on Mar 19, 2007 20:05:11 GMT -5
This is one of the earlier horror movies I ever saw because it always used to be on HBO when I was younger. I enjoyed it in that respect, but it's really pretty bad lol.
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Post by GL on Mar 20, 2007 10:40:02 GMT -5
Toads are very polite creatures mate. True, and I love that about you, but you still made a fuss about what I would say about it and then nothing.
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Canetoad
The Prodigal Toad
HMaM member of the Month, July 2006
Cry Havoc! And let slip the cats of war.
Posts: 2,868
|
Post by Canetoad on Mar 22, 2007 1:21:57 GMT -5
That is true, and I apologise. Consider fuss forthcoming, but only after I feel masochistic enough to subject myself to rewatching 90 minutes of unadulterated codswallop so I can give you a more informed response.
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Post by The Walking Dude on Apr 4, 2007 9:17:45 GMT -5
i wanna find the roky erikson song but i just can't bring myself to sit through it again
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Post by razors on Jun 6, 2007 18:49:12 GMT -5
I was so shocked that this movie was so bad. I'm a huge fan of part 3 but this was a letdown for me. Boring and just not scary or interesting in any way. May all copies of this film be smashed up and burnt in a big fire. ha! ha!
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Post by GL on Jun 7, 2007 10:34:57 GMT -5
I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. It's the perfect example of "so-bad-it's-good" or "guilty pleasure" for me.
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Post by razors on Jun 11, 2007 15:37:38 GMT -5
My problem with this is that they turned Leatherface into a complete joke.
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