The original “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” shocked audiences back in the 70s. Since then, the series has struggled to have the same impact. Here’s my personal ranking of the films.
- Leatherface
“Leatherface” is pure savagery from beginning to end. It’s not scary but just thoroughly unpleasant and despicable. The backstory it provides is pathetic. This is one of the worst horror films I’ve seen in a long time.
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation
Definitely don’t expect this to be as good as “Star Trek: The Next Generation”. This is an abysmal horror movie from beginning to end. It stars Matthew McConaughey (“Interstellar”) and Renée Zellweger (“Jerry Maguire”) and they’re probably both praying that nobody else ever sees or discusses this film ever again.
- Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III
The third outing in the series is pretty terrible. There’s virtually nothing new on offer here and it’s just a complete waste. It’s not as bad as some of the other ones but there’s certainly no reason to see it.
- Texas Chainsaw 3D
Leatherface is back in 3D with “Texas Chainsaw 3D”, a direct sequel to the original that ignores all the films in-between. There’s nothing here that helps to distinguish it from dozens of other modern slasher films.
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The original film is cherished by many. However, I always found it a merely unpleasant watch. While I can see the effort that went into it, it’s just not my type of film at all. Parts of it are horrifying but unlike “Halloween” or “Psycho”, it’s not enjoyable to watch.
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
A lot of people will probably complain that I’m putting this ahead of the original. To be honest, there is not much in it. While the old film had a homemade grainy look to it, this one is more polished. Well, as polished as you can make a film about a chainsaw-wielding lunatic. Also, this version has R. Lee Ermey (“Full Metal Jacket”) and he’s always great fun.
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
“The Beginning” only gets such a high position because of the performance of R. Lee Ermey, who gets more to do here than in the previous film. The scenes with Ermey are actually fairly entertaining. It’s a shame that nothing like that can be said about the rest of the picture.
- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
Maybe a controversial pick but the second instalment in the series at least offers a few chuckles as it opts for a more comedic style. It also has Dennis Hopper (“Speed”) have a chainsaw duel with Leatherface.