Watching Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 isn’t quite a common response when you ask someone what they want to do for their birthday, but I have some wonderfully weird friends. So the other day we gathered at my house to screen this bizarre title, and try to make sense of what some call a cult classic, and others call an absolute mess of a horror film. If you try to keep up with any continuity throughout the Chainsaw series, you’ll be lost in a sea of senseless sequels and wretched remakes. Your best bet is just to dive in headfirst and accept the madness that these movies tend to embrace so effectively.
Chainsaw 2 is supposed to be a direct sequel to the original, which is also the case for several other entries in the series. Apparently everyone and their brother thought they knew better when it came to what exactly happened after that iconic film, but if anyone has first dibs, let’s give it to the original director, Tobe Hooper. Why he came back for a sequel is uncertain. Theories range somewhere between contractual obligation and a desire to satirize eighties culture. Either way, the man delivered the delirium in more ways than one here.
Right out of the gate you’re sent straight into crazy town with a few notable main characters pitted against the Sawyer family we all grew to love from the first film. Most notable is Dennis Hopper, who was on a tear making movies like Blue Velvet, Hoosiers, and Chainsaw 2, all released in 1986. Hopper’s character isn’t pivotal to the story (I’m not sure anyone really is), but his presence is one of the reasons this film is so beloved. It’s basically a case of crazy versus crazy when you introduce Hopper’s twisted charisma to the Sawyer family. This sets up a fantastic climax and an even stronger buildup to the moment when it finally explodes.
My only issue, which others have shared with me, is that the film seems a bit disjointed. There are sequences when dialogue doesn’t quite make sense, jumping abruptly into lines with no clear connection to anything we are aware of. Moments like this almost enhance the feeling of losing your mind as you watch the legendary Jim Siedow spout such senseless lines over what feels like the course of the entire film the second he appears on screen. Which I suppose improves the viewing experience if the goal was to give the audience that “let’s make everyone lose their minds” sensation.
Doing a bit of research afterwards, I found there was some push and pull between the director and the studio, with the studio wanting more traditional horror vibes and Tobe Hooper aiming for a dark comedy feel. There was even a deleted scene with horror icon Joe Bob Briggs as a television reporter covering a massacre that reflected all of the absurd excess in 1980s culture. From what I read, this was removed because it detracted from the pace of the film’s run-and-gun climax. Which I can understand, given the nature of the ending and how quickly it moves, but it still would have been a scene worth seeing.
As for Leatherface, you get plenty of his rude and crude behavior, but this time with a bit more energy. He’s definitely livelier than ever before, and while he’s still a bumbling idiot in the eyes of his family, his character comes across as more sympathetic here. This was an issue for me only because Leatherface was so terrifying in the original film. This version of him feels like a parody. If that’s what Tobe Hooper intended, then he succeeded, but I don’t understand why you would want to take such a memorable character and strip away what made him so distinctive in the first place.
For all that this film lacks, it more than compensates with its unique charm. The movie is far from perfect, but as with many horror films from this decade, it’s more about the vibe than anything else. Chainsaw 2 stands on its own in the series as a pillar of bizarre originality, paired with just enough sickening twists and turns to make your head feel detached from your body. It’s an underrated gem that often gets overlooked when people start digging into the franchise for crumbs leading back to the original. After so many failed attempts, the writing’s on the wall when it comes to anything approaching the original film. At this point your best bet is to try something different while still speaking the same language the original taught us. This sequel succeeds at that far above any of the other entries, and if you haven’t watched it yet, now is as good a time as any to let your guard down and enjoy the ride. It’s certainly one you’ll remember above any other sequels in the series.
