The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 | | Cast : | Dennis Hopper, Caroline Williams | | Director : | Tobe Hooper | | Studio : | Mgm/Ua Studios | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen | | Released Date : | August 22, 1986 | | DVD Released Date : | July 17, 2001 | | Language : | French (Subtitled), English (Dubbed), Spanish (Subtitled), English (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | July 12, 2005 | | Summary | They tried but don't blame the crew blame Cannon films | Content
 | As I said above they tried but the crew didn't film it that way Cannon films (bad language) it up I have seen Hoopers version not avaidible anywhere it is fantastic but this is crap thanks to cannon and their terible editing I mean to say this version ignores the ending of the original in which the hitchhiker is run over by a sixteen wheeler its one of the only if not the only gory sequence in the first one and cannon just said(bad language) it stick a plate in his head and hope people will forget shame on you hopefully one day Hooper will digitally remaster his version the one i saw was fuzzy except for the bits that appear in this version hope this helped |
| Rating | | | Date | June 22, 2005 | | Summary | How...Good...Are...You? | Content
| This sequel is way too freakin' weird to be taken seriously. Even though that may have been the intention, this installment is still pretty bad. The sheer terror from the first movie is gone, replaced by tons of repulsive gore and a whole new clan of goofy cannibalistic rednecks that overact to the point of absurdity. The new goofy, let's-make-fun-of-ourselves-for-no-reason tone completely takes the edge of the story, even though there wasn't much to begin with.
Take the opening sequence...some people are being chased down by the cannibal clan on a highway and Leatherface simply saws off the guy's head when they pull up beside him. This over the top storytelling doesn't fit and the entire movie is not scary, effective, or even worth any horror fan's time.
Dennis Hopper plays a man who has lost a family member by the hands of the Leatherface clan, so he is on the hunt for them. Meanwhile a female DJ has caught the eye of Leatherface, who pokes at her "seductively" with his chainsaw. So, she gets involved in the whole mess and has to save the day. Will she defeat the horrendous clan of cannibals, or become Leatherface's weird sex toy? You probably won't care. Stick with the first movie. |
| Rating | | | Date | May 13, 2005 | | Summary | 2.5 Hmm.... | Content
| Well, I can certainly understand why so many people hate this movie, even if I don't really agree with them. And, truth be told, this really is pretty frickin stupid. It's a sad irony: Tobe Hooper was apparently inspired to make this a pure comedy because so many people failed to notice the dark humor in the first film, yet, TCM2, despite having removed any genuine attempts at horror, is actually *less* funny than the first movie. Though I think this is part of the problem: The family's wacky behavior was funny partially because it so contrasted with the general tone of the film. Here, the contrast is lost, and the main characters just ham it up absurdly and endlessly. Really, this film doesn't have all that many jokes, per se, that a lot of over the top absurdity. But, though it really isn't very funny, it is kinda vaguely amusing, and I never got bored watching it, so it's worth a rental.
The basic plot, such as it is, is that DJ Stretch and former Lt. Enright do battle with the Sawyers, who have relocated to north east Texas, and are now successful entrepreneurs, famous for their fine chili. There are more specifics other than that, but they aren't worth mentioning, as horror-comedies are even less interested in plot than horror movies in general. As I said, the film basically comes down to us watching the wacky family prance about and yell and whatnot, or watch Dennis Hopper prance about and yell and whatnot, as the deranged, chainsaw-wielding ex-state trooper. Though the acting is over the top and `bad', it is in a way that displays a certain amount of skill. These are actors hamming it up intentionally, rather than amateurs hamming it up because that's all they know how to do. Some people don't seem to notice the difference all that much, but it matters to me. (Compare this with `Return of the Living Dead II' to see the contrast illustrated. Ugh. Dear God that is a pathetic turd of a movie.)
The film is most interesting due to some nice set design and a bit of gore. The Sawyer's lair is now an endless subterranean cavern, lit by christmas-tree lights, or something like them, anyway. Kinda interesting. Tom Savini does the gore here. It's certainly not his most realistic work, though one supposes this is intentional, as this film is supposed to funny, rather than horrifying. Still, there's some decent stuff, particularly a chainsaw impalement and one dude who's partially skinned while still alive. Other than that you've got a fun chainsaw duel between Enright and Leatherface, which is pretty damn cool, and some of the stuff between Stretch and Leatherface is pretty decent. The famed scene where he kinda, I dunno, molests her with the chainsaw is appropriately uncomfortable, and the whole subplot about his trying to court her and protect her from the rest of the family is fairly amusing. (The part where he suddenly starts to dance with her is pretty damn funny. Probably the only part where I really laughed)
Hmm, not much else to say. The soundtrack is annoying, as it's trying to be over the top, horror music parody, but it doesn't really work, and is just kinda distracting. Also, there's been quite a bit of confusion over who the guy with the plate in his head is. Personally, I'm supposing that he's supposed to be the hitchhiker. He acts much like him, and looks pretty similar despite being a different actor, and I presume that the plate is supposed to be a result of his being run over. It never explicitly says that it's him, but that's part of the reason why I think it is him: If it were a new character, you'd think they'd say something about it. Also, there've been some complaints that it leaves a lot of loose ends. (Spoiler Alert) I think it's implied that Enright's grenade killed everyone down in the tunnels, so that Stretch is the only one left at the end. Still, I will say that it can't be definitively proven that that is what happened.
Well, that's it. As I said, pretty frickin stupid, but still kinda entertaining anyway. Worth seeing if you're a fan of the original, if for no other reason than that it is a real sequel (i.e. directed by Hooper), even if one that isn't so hot. |
| Rating | | | Date | April 24, 2005 | | Summary | Shame on Tobe Hooper | Content
| As the movie progressed, I became sicker - not at the amount of blood and guts that were spilled but at the thought that Leatherface went from a beyond ghoulish guy who made your heart leap out of your chest just looking at him to a complete laughingstock. (Leatherface in love? Are you kidding me???)
I don't know what it was with Hollywood in the mid-1980's but they took two scary dudes - Leatherface and Freddy Krueger - and buttered them up, making them cute and lovable for the yuppie chumps who wanted to be cool and say they loved horror movies but who didn't want to be scared sh**less. "Thanks" alot, Hollywood, for catering to the lowest common denomiator.
Shame also on Dennis Hopper, who's a great actor, for lowering himself to star in this flop (what one will do to get a part). Good thing he redeemed himself eight years later in "Speed."
From here on in, the TCM series goes completely downhill (not like there was ever a need for sequels in the first place, but I digress). The third installment and beyond had zero to do with the original (the last installment that came out in 2003 was an outright remake of the original. Why bother watching a second-rate remake, or any remake for that matter, when you can watch the real thing?)
Hollywood continued its legacy of crappy sequels to great originals with this disaster. |
| Rating | | | Date | April 04, 2005 | | Summary | At least it doesn't repeat TCM | Content
| I'm not sure, but I don't think Tobe Hooper wanted to film Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. I believe in order to ink multi-film contract he agreed to making this sequel. That aside, I believe that Mr. Hooper used this opportunity lampoon his first film and to also try his hand at developing the characters of Leatherface and the Sawyer family a little further. What I feel is of note in the film are scenes that try to delve into the sexual needs of the "Slasher" template and the idea of developing dynamic of victim and killer a little further. The story works for me by flipping the motivation of Killer and victim. Dennis Hopper plays the uncle of the only surviving character from the first film, who has spent fifteen years tracking down the Sawyer family so that he can enact his vengeance upon them. In a way the Sawyers play the part of the victims, not helpless and surely not undeserving, but there is a note of sympathy that is hard to ignore. Taking this a step further, Hooper has a would be female victim offer herself in exchange for her life in a scene where she is cornered by Leatherface, who then proceeds to fall in love (or more probably lust) with the woman. He then lets the woman go twice in the movie, strengthening the sympathy and providing a strange dichotomy for the killer. What doesn't work for me is the gore. For me it felt too cartoonish, and in places unnecessarily disturbing, something that the first film proves that a horror films does not need. As far as horror sequels go, to me this one is much more interesting than most, though by itself it is nowhere near as strong or generally disturbing as the original. |
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