I watched every Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie so you don’t have to

I’m currently in a horror mood and am working my way back through various horror film series from the past. Ones I’ve watched in years gone by, but in these very busy times, ones that perhaps I haven’t revisited for a while.

One of the film series I’ve revisited is the Texas Chainsaw Massacre collection. The series is currently nine movies long, beginning with 1974’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and centres its story around a family of cannibals, most notably Leatherface.

The films have popped up sporadically over the decades, often with fits and starts, but they are quite famous. Well, the original is at least – the sequels, prequels, reboots etc, less so.

And it’s important to note the series does include sequels, prequels, and reboots. In fact, the Texas Chainsaw Massacre collection contains a hodge-podge of different films and continuities, and is incredibly disjointed, making it one of the most confusing in horror history.

__

Anyway, the first entry in the series is The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) from director Tobe Hooper. Produced on a small budget, the film is grubby and genuinely unsettling, and is easily the best entry in the series.

Not only does it include some creepy and disturbing moments (the introduction of Leatherface is particularly frightening), but it is incredibly influential. It inspired many slasher movies that followed, and set the template for most of the Texas movies that came after.

As for the story, a group of teens on a road trip explore a seemingly abandoned house, only to discover (all too late) that it is a makeshift slaughterhouse for Leatherface and his family. All but one teen is killed off, leaving Sally Hardesty as the lone survivor who is on track for becoming the main course at the next family meal.

__

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 followed in 1986, once again from director Tobe Hooper, and this time takes the direction of a black comedy horror. The story focuses on a radio DJ who crosses paths with Leatherface and his family, leading towards more horror hijinks.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 has its moments, including some frightening scenes, but it is too long for its own good. It sags in places and seems to run out of steam towards the end.

__

The third movie, director Jeff Burr’s Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990), is a loose sequel which could essentially be watched as a standalone picture, and is fine if you take it as a standard slasher, but not much more. The film revolves around a young couple who encounter Leatherface and Co., and is perhaps most notable for featuring Ken Foree and Viggo Mortensen, who both put in fab performances.

__

Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1995) aka The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre comes next, is another standalone sequel, and is generally rubbish. Directed by Kim Henkel, a young Matthew McConaugh and Renée Zellweger are the highlights, but the story about some teens who encounter Leatherface and his family on prom night is utter tosh.

__

The fifth film – director Marcus Nispel’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) – is a remake/reboot of the franchise, which follows similar footsteps to the original, before changing course slightly. Not for the better though, as the movie drifts the longer it goes on.

__

Film number six from director Jonathan Liebesman comes next. Titled The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006), this one is a prequel to 2003’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and erm, kind of just exists.

The story takes place around four years before its predecessor and focuses on more teens coming into contact with Leatherface and his family. There’s not much going on here, it repeats some of the ideas from the original, and is quite dull.

__

The next film is 2013’s Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013), which ignores all of the past films except the original. Devised as a direct sequel to the 1974 film, director John Luessenhop’s horror centres its story around a woman who discovers she shares a connection with Leatherface.

For the most part, this one also kind of just exists and is a bit dull, however, things pick up a bit towards the end. But it’s not great so don’t get too excited.

__

Film number eight – Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo’s Leatherface (2017) – is another prequel, this time to the original 1974’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, as well as Texas Chainsaw 3D. The film provides an origin story to Leatherface, and attempts something different to what has come before, but sadly is easily the worst offering in the series.

__

And then onto movie nine, David Blue Garcia’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which is a direct sequel to the original and ignores all of the other films entirely. This one was released via Netflix, and when it debuted I have to say I was not a huge fan the first time around, largely because it is overstuffed with ideas and ham-fisted social commentary.

However, it is very re-watchable and is arguably the best entry since the original. Whether this is an endorsement or not is open for debate, but it is improving with age.

__

OK, so those are the films, but what is perhaps the most notable aspect of the Texas franchise? Well, the obvious answer would be Leatherface, who appears in all of the movies.

He is easily the most recognisable element of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie series, and even non-fans recognise him. That said, for the most part he is just plonked into the films, becoming a consistent figure by default more than anything else.

His look differs wildly too. One minute he takes on the appearance of a hulking brute, while the next minute he looks like Bea Arthur auditioning for The Mask 2.

Leatherface aside, the actual consistent thing in the series is the reuse of ideas, angles, shots, etc from the original movie. The strength of the first film essentially drives the rest of the franchise forward.

The result? Often it is variations on what came before.

So, as a horror series, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies are a bit of a bumpy ride (and that’s putting it mildly). Most of the films get a new director, new writers, a new cast, and a new production team/studio behind them, meaning there is a severe lack of consistency, and there’s not always a lot of originality on offer either.

That said, the first movie is an absolute classic of the genre. Sure, it’s vile and watching it can be a truly uncomfortable experience, but it makes for a ruddy good horror!

My advice? If you ever want to dip into this series but can’t face all the entries, then opt for the original from 1974 and the Netflix film from 2022.

You might want to add The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 or 2003’s remake if you really feel up for it, but that’s about it. Avoiding 2017’s Leatherface is something you should probably do too.

Anyway, I’ve (re)watched the films so you don’t have to. You’re welcome.

__

__

Thank you for stopping by It’s A Stampede! to read this post about the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie series. For more posts be sure to check out the recommended reads below.