Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022) – Review/ Summary (with Spoilers)

If you love bloody, disgusting, gory, just straight-up violent horror movies? Netflix’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre has you covered.

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Director(s)	David Blue Garcia
Screenplay By	Chris Thomas Devlin
Date Released	2/18/2022
Where To Watch	Netflix
Genre(s)	Action, Horror, Young Adult
Duration	1 Hour 23 Minutes
Content Rating	R
Noted Cast
Dante	Jacob Latimore
Melody	Sarah Yarkin
Lila	Elsie Fisher
Ruth	Nell Hudson
Leatherface	Mark Burnham

Film Summary

What could be seen as Downtown Harlow has had better days. However, with nearly every property owned by the bank, a group led by Melody and Dante buy all the titles to said properties and begin planning for a new day is on the horizon. However, one property, an orphanage, still has occupants, and between Melody and Dante, but especially Dante, they awaken the beast of Harlow, who has been kept at bay for 40 years.

Cast & Character Guide

Please Note: This is not an exhaustive list of every cast member.

Dante

Dante is a chef, and alongside Melody, he found Harlow as a place to start his empire. For with owning most of the town’s titles from the bank, the original plan was to either sell or lease locations and create a brand new community.

Melody

Like Dante, Melody was excited about creating a new community. Especially one that, even in Texas, could be safe, environmentally friendly, and the kind of place where her sister, Lila, could be comfortable.

Lila

Lila is dealing with surviving a school shooting and being torn between living with her sister out near Harlow or with her dad.

Ruth

Ruth is Dante’s fiancée.

Leatherface

For over 40 years, Leatherface has lived in an orphanage within downtown Harlow, not bothering a soul. But with Dante being aggressive and disturbing the peace Leatherface’s caretaker created for him, so comes the monster that no longer is subdued by an old woman’s affections.

Other Noteworthy Information

• Reason(s) for Film Rating: Gore (Body torn apart and mutilated), blood, cursing, drinking, smoking, and gun violence
• There is a post-credits scene

Question(s) Left Unanswered

1. Is this on any of the past films timelines?

Review

Highlights

Showing Gentrification Outside A Major City

Am I trying to justify what Leatherface does throughout the movie? No. However, you do have to appreciate the basis of this film is that Dante and Melody are gentrifiers with no respect for the local people or culture. The type who price people out of their homes, complain about the culture, despite them being the foreign ones who moved in.

We usually see this type of story in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, the Miami area, and other big cities. But, flipping it and having it where it is a rural, down on its luck town? It almost makes you feel torn. Leatherface is a psychopath, but for 40 years, he found peace and some kind of routine. Yet here comes Melody and Dante, harassing an old woman, bringing outsiders, and you recognizing what they are doing is legal, yet not right.

But these are the young people you are supposed to hope live. You are supposed to want Ruth and Dante to get married. Lila is supposed to be with Melody and hopefully move on from the trauma of living through a school shooting. Yet, for the first time in a long time, you get a horror movie that makes the would-be villain someone you want to root for.

You’ll Yell At The Screen, Gasp, and Probably Have Your Jaw Drop

The effects team really did a marvelous job. Whether you are watching Leatherface get his brand new face, use someone’s broken wrist to stab them in the throat, or use that iconic chainsaw, this is very violent. And the surprising thing is, outside of that wrist example, it isn’t like Leatherface is pulling out new tricks. He is kept agile as ever, smarter than I remember from past Texas Chainsaw Massacres, but he is still just a big man with muscle.

Yet this film has it where whether he has a weapon or not, never mind if his opponent does or not, the likelihood of them winning is slim, and he will make them regret approaching him before they die. And I’ll be damned that there are multiple instances, including the ending, which will make you blare your eyes, have your jaw drop, and verbally, one phrase or another, utter how you cannot believe what you just saw.

Low Points

At Moments People Just Seem Too Dumb

This is the kind of horror movie where there were multiple chances to get the hell out of dodge before someone got killed, but the opportunity wasn’t taken. Which, if you get animated like me, will make you mad as hell since it almost seems like certain people only got to live to set up a sequel, not because they were ever portrayed as smart enough to earn survival.

Overall

Our Rating: Positive (Worth Seeing)

While some characters sticking around way longer than they should have does present an annoyance, alongside the film setting up a sequel, overall, this is worth seeing for horror movie fans. It’s brutal, makes you feel for the person who is supposed to be the villain, while giving you a reason to turn on the would-be heroes. And while it doesn’t reinvigorate the franchise, you aren’t left feeling this was an unnecessary film either. It does just enough to justify its existence while reminding you why the horror genre might be the only one that can keep rebooting its franchises every 10 or so years.

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