"The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning" review

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)

Director: Jonathan Liebesman
Writers: Sheldon Turner

Jordana Brewster ... Chrissie
Taylor Handley ... Dean
Diora Baird ... Bailey
Matthew Bomer ... Eric (as Matt Bomer)
R. Lee Ermey ... Sheriff Hoyt
Andrew Bryniarski ... Thomas Hewitt / Leatherface
Lee Tergesen ... Holden

Two couples are traveling through Texas on their way to a Chainsaw Massacre. They get stopped by the drill sergeant from "Full Metal Jacket",(R. Lee Ermey), who wants to take them back to his house for some good eating. His beloved nephew, (Leatherface), lost his job at the slaughter house but still feels the urge to keep carving meat. Ermey brings home the meat. His family won't go hungry again. The rest of the movie has Leatherface doing what he does best as the two couples try their best to survive their nightmarish night in Texas.

I had low expectations for this one. A prequel to the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" sounded pretty desperate. I'm happy to tell you that the filmmakers didn't dwell too much on the origin of Leatherface. They glossed over his chainsaw psychosis so they could get down to the business of slicing and dicing people. There are some plot points thrown in about the Vietnam war but it all becomes meaningless as soon as Leatherface gets his hands on the teens bodies. Leatherface doesn't discuss politics. He lets the chainsaw do the talking.

"Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning" is a brutally efficient horror movie. It cuts to the chase and lets Leatherface use his chainsaw more than any other movie in the series. Jordana Brewster shows up as the one would-be victim who always manages to be a voyeur to most of the slaughter. Whenever she's around, Leatherface can't stop himself from tearing into some flesh. She'll try her best to evade the fate of her friends but Leatherface is dead set on making sure no one survives this massacre.

"Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning" is a decent horror flick. I enjoyed it. It has a sufficient blood and guts payoff as Leatherface shows us how much pain and suffering he's capable of inflicting. As it turns out, quite a lot of it. It's worth a look.

SCORE: 3 out of 4 screaming Jordanas