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TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE = C-
I'm not even sure why I bother anymore. I'm beginning to think I got lucky in 2014 with OCULUS & it'll be the last truly great horror film I will ever see. Without a doubt TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSCRE (2022) had it's strengths. It wasn't without it's good moments. It's simply that the weaknesses far outweighed those strengths. For every pro there were multiple cons. For everything that was done right, multiple things were done wrong.
Upon first glance, the film draws you in making you think that you're about to witness a story of epic revenge unfold from a woman who has been piling up a rage of vengeance for the last 48 years. You're looking forward to seeing Sally Hardesty go through the process of discovery, investigation & ultimate retribution, but instead discover her to be a minor character at best. You'd think 48 years of preparation might have led to her making wiser decisions, but she seemed to fair better flying by the seat of her pants through pure improvisation in 1974 than what she did here. I'd like to give the character as well as the script points for redemption based on her cool save, but when only a few moments later it's all for not, those points quickly get stripped away.
The characters in the story were interesting, but they were treated as if they were not. Many were built up as if they'd have meaning to the centralized plot, but they were so easily killed off and dismembered that you would have thought they were senseless bodies simply there so that the special effects department could make a bloody mess of their deaths.
Very little of this film made sense & that isn't so much the problem as is the fact that there was little reason for the film not to make sense. There was a story here that could have easily been developed into something good, but instead they felt that being ambiguous and cryptic would be a better way to go.
Of all the TCM films, & yes I've seen them all, this was far from the worst, yet it wasn't the best either.
Props for a good cast that gave some solid performances. Props for the special effects team that made the kills one of the elements that made this film watchable. But a few cool kills doesn't make up for a lazy, nonsensical plot. This film had the blueprints to easily be a B, maybe even an A but instead settles for an apathetic C-.
Extra points off for trying to be clever with the right wing propaganda with guns. I believe in gun rights myself. Responsible gun ownership is something I stand for, but if you're gonna throw in a political stance into your film do so with a bit more conviction and courage. Don't be so prissy thinking you're doing eruditely. It comes off as ostentatious.
