The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Inspired by the true story, 5 people are driving up to Dallas when they happen upon a hitchhiker visibly shaken by some traumatic event. She mumbles that some people are all dead and screams that they were going the wrong way when they pick her up to try to bring her to some help. Disturbed by these events, she shoots herself in the head and so begins the chain of events. Trying to dispose of the body, the five (Jessica Biel, Eric Balfour, Jonathan Tucker, Mike Vogel and Erica Leerhsen) are led to an old mill where they were told they could find the sheriff. All they find is a mysterious boy, who tells them the sheriff is at a nearby house. So while the group splits off, Leatherface makes his grand entrance, chainsaw in hand. Among the cast of characters is R. Lee Ermey as the Sheriff, in his best tough guy role since “Full Metal Jacket”.

While viewers of the original may be disappointed in this move toward Hollywood horror from its low-budget roots, first-time viewers will be more than scared from this movie. Like any horror movie, the inevitable telegraphing of events is there with people going their separate ways, lots of running, and dumb stereotypical decisions that lead to deafening audience screams of “Don’t go in there!” But this is one of those movies where if you blink, you will absolutely miss something (like that Harry Knowles head you find in Leatherface’s basement). By the end, you’ll be wondering what’s been filled more: your appetite for horror or that tank top Biel wears throughout the movie. The film is crisp, the scenes grotesque, and Leatherface is just as supernatural as ever where nothing ever slows him down in his quest for more bodies to kill. 3 stars