The original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the greatest horror films ever made. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 is also pretty good. But the rest of the (Tobe Hooper-less) franchise — from 1990’s Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III to 2013’s Texas Chainsaw 3D — should be avoided at all costs. Hopefully Leatherface can snap the uninspiring streak.
Directed by Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, Leatherface takes place before the events of the first Texas Chainsaw Massacre, when the youngest child in the cannibalistic Sawyer family is “sentenced to a mental hospital after a suspicious incident leaves the sheriffs’ daughter dead,” according to the synopsis. “Ten years later, he kidnaps a young nurse and escapes with three other inmates. Pursued by authorities including the deranged sheriff out to avenge his daughter’s death, the young Sawyer teen goes on a violent road trip from hell, molding him into the monster known now as Leatherface.”
The movie stars Jessica Madsen, Sam Coleman, Sam Strike, and James Bloor as the escaped inmates, and Finn Jones (Loras Tyrell on Game of Thrones and Danny Rand on Iron Fist) and Stephen Dorff as the local law enforcement. The part of the rusty chainsaw will be played by the cousin of the chainsaw from Evil Dead II. Ugh, typical Hollywood. It’s all about who you know.
Leatherface will be released on September 21, with a limited theatrical and full video-on-demand run beginning on October 20.
