Posted 27 June 2010 - 06:21 AM
I didn't like their Chainsaw Massacre prequel too much. Yes, it's flashy gore eye candy, but it's also B-grade schlock writing with characters that are incredibly stupid, even by horror film standards, and the ending is just facepalm-worthy. Besides, knowing that it's a prequel took away all of the suspense because we KNOW that they will get away with butchering these idiots. It's really disappointing because, the idea of a prequel to a slash flick featuring Leatherface really would have lent itself to some deep psychological exploration on the influences he had growing up that shaped him into the sick fuck we all know and love. Instead, it is glossed over, and skipped straight ahead to the gore.
That said, I am not saying that it was a bad movie. Really, considering what the cast had to work with, they really did give some pretty damn good performances. It was an okay movie and could very well be a guilty pleasure to many horror/slasher fans, but it is almost the same movie as the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre and it is for that reason that it is really forgettable to me. My complaint is not that they changed anything, it's just that they did not change enough, they did not explore the concept nearly enough at nearly enough angles. Wouldn't it have been a lot more effective if the movie instead tried to make us scared of ourselves and present Leatherface's life in a way we could sympathize with, so we could be horrified at ourselves for agreeing with the developing machinations of his increasingly disturbed mind?
I am not going to write off Platinum Dunes though, because I have heard pretty good things about the Nightmare of Elm Street remake. From what I have been hearing PD is really starting to improve their craft with that film and it is for that reason that I want to slap them upside their heads for shelving the horror franchises they bought after making just one or two movies. They need to make more.
As for TMNT, well I think it would be interesting to see how it will pan out. It'd be hilarious to see if some of their experience doing horror movies leaked out to stain TMNT and make the mood dark and fucked up. If they could do that and pull it off even competently, I would be pleased.
Prime : As someone who have seen the Star Trek 2009 franchise reboot movie and liked it for what it is, I know the feeling all too well when I hear neckbearded manchildren bawww in unison about how that movie raped their childhood/teenage hood. Zaranyzerak on Youtube had a pretty damn good discussion about it on youtube if you care to look it up.
