In this day and age, horror remakes are a popular trend in Hollywood. From Rob Zombie’s Halloween, Halloween 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, The Amityville Horror, and many more in the making, these retellings reel in horror fans eager to see what new elements have been added to their favorite classics. One of the first remakes to set the trend in motion was 2003’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
This blockbuster stars Jessica Biel as Erin, an unsuspecting woman who faces off against Leatherface and his family of flesh-eating villains. More than 19 years after its release, this film retains a mixed reception; some fans love it, while others adamantly point out its flaws compared to the 1974 original. Nevertheless, this remake packs a wallop for any fan of the horror genre. Along with considerable jump scares and bloody kills, it shows that a horror remake can still keep audiences at the edge of their seats. Here’s what 2003’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre got right.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
The Final Girl
New Line Cinema
Every horror fan loves seeing a strong final girl. Erin delivers that and much more. She starts off as the most level-headed member of her friend’s group with an elevated moral compass, a Laurie Strode type. As the plot unfolds, Erin realizes she’s in real danger and quickly turns into a fighter to survive the harrowing ordeal the Hewitt family has prepared for her. Unlike Sally Hardesty from the original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Erin doesn’t just run and cry as horrible things await her; she fights. In the film’s most iconic moment, Erin avenges all of her fallen friends by running Sheriff Hoyt over with his own vehicle before escaping. Erin earns her Final Girl badge through and through.
The Chase Scenes
Every good horror film has at least a few chase scenes, and this remake isn’t the exception. From Erin’s van escape, to her escaping Leatherface’s lair after witnessing her boyfriend Kemper’s demise, the abandoned shack chase, to finally seeking shelter inside a slaughterhouse, Erin runs as if her life depends on it (which it does). During the climatic slaughterhouse chase, Erin gains the upper hand by setting a quick ruse for Leatherface, and then attacking him with a butcher knife, dismembering him like he did to every one of her friends.
The Opening Scene
A horror film will either win or lose its audience with its opening scene. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre does the former excellently. In the first five minutes of the film, Erin has her boyfriend Kemper pull over to pick up a hitchhiker. As Erin’s friends anticipate, the girl soon starts to show an unhinged side clearly caused by some form of trauma, and in what is perhaps the most shocking moment in the film, she shoots herself in the mouth, serving as a catalyst for the film’s plot. What truly makes this scene shine (aside from the brain bits blown out of the girl’s head) is the actor portraying the hitchhiker, none other than Lauren German from Lucifer. German shows a vulnerability and desperation that truly makes audiences feel for her character despite her short screen time.
The Characters
While horror classics like Halloween and The Exorcist are remembered for their leads stellar performances, some modern horror flicks do the exact opposite, showcasing their talent poorly. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake counts with a solid script and an ensemble of characters that audiences can invest themselves in. Erin is resourceful, fast, and bold as she doesn’t stop at anything to survive her night against the Hewitt family. Morgan is the smartest of the group, always offering a logical solution to every predicament, if only his friends listened to him. Regardless, he’s loyal and eventually loses his life while protecting Erin. Andy and Pepper have significantly more common sense than Erin, and try to dissuade her from dragging the group into a messy situation when dealing with the hitchhiker’s dead body. And Kemper is, despite his somewhat rough exterior, the brawn of the group, facing Sheriff Hoyt fearlessly as he questions them about the hitchhikers’ tragic demise.
The villains are on a different level of maniacal. Leatherface is the staple antagonist of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise, but Sheriff Hoyt is a standout all on his own. Cruel, conniving, and relentless, Hoyt shows his victims no mercy and takes special joy in toying with their deteriorating states of mind. And Monty, the patriarch of the Hewitt family, is pure evil as he dispatches his family members to do his bidding and bring home “dinner” in the form of Erin and her friends. By the film’s conclusion, audiences can both mourn the loss of the heroes, cheer the downfall of the villains, and feel satisfied by this remake’s homage to the original source material.
