Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		2.5

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III Blu-ray Movie Review

Didn't I already review this?

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 11, 2018

What are the chances of having to watch two films called Leatherface within just a few weeks of each other? Well, evidently 100% if you’re this particular reviewer, since it wasn’t all that long ago I was writing about Leatherface, yet another attempt to reboot a venerable horror franchise, in at least somewhat the same way as the similarly fairly recent Jigsaw and Hellraiser: Judgment. Of course, attempts to rejigger and/or reinvent horror franchises are about as old as horror films themselves, and so it probably shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise that in its day this particular Leatherface was itself an attempt to reinvent or perhaps more correctly reinvigorate a (then) nascent but troubled "franchise" (one that had already taken only a few years shy of two decades just to get to three films). One of the kind of weird things about either of the two Leatherface films I’ve personally had to review is that both of them tend to push what might be thought of as some of the focal characters of the whole The Texas Chain Saw Massacre series, namely Leatherface’s entire extremely hungry family, into the veritable wings to let Leatherface himself take center stage.

There is some interesting information imparted in both the commentary and a making of featurette included on this Blu-ray disc as supplements that goes into some detail about New Line’s history and how its involvement with the whole Texas Chainsaw Massacre series came to be, and what exactly New Line hoped to achieve with Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. There’s little doubt, even from the most ardent adherents to the series, that The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 was at least something of a disappointment, and for some fans the first sequel’s departure from quasi-documentary style drama to something decidedly more lunatic was not a great decision. For New Line, Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III was an attempt to get things back on track, or perhaps to use a more appropriate metaphor, to reattach a loose chain to a saw.

The first Texas Chain Saw Massacre was famously based, at least in part, on the horrifying true life story of serial killer Ed Gein, the “creative” type who also inspired parts of Alfred Hitchcock’s immortal Psycho, something the more comedic second film jettisoned. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III actually features a brief vignette which will obviously remind prescient viewers of another similar scene in the Hitchcock opus, as a seedy gas station attendant named Alfredo (Tom Everett) peeks through a little eyehole cut into the wall of his office so that he can spy on pretty customer Michelle (Kate Hodge) as she uses the facilities. That leads to a skirmish with an apparently innocent bystander named Tex (Viggo Mortensen — yes, Viggo Mortensen). As Alfredo and Tex begin fighting, Michelle is able to escape the mayhem with her boyfriend Ryan (William Butler).

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III kind of goes the “road movie” route for a while, with Ryan and Michelle desperately trying to get the hell out of Dodge (and/or Texas), while they encounter a bizarre series of characters due to various misadventures they experience. Chief among these supporting types is a survival expert named Benny (Ken Foree), whose “particular set of skills” (so to speak) come in handy once Leatherface (R.A. Milhailoff) and his crew show up. Needless to say, most of the focal characters end up in the family “manse”, and not all of them make it out alive (lest anyone be wondering).

There are some extremely disturbing elements in Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III, including one victim’s fate which the making of documentary suggests was actually based on the fate of one of Gein’s victims (and the documentary provides photographic evidence of this and some other of Gein’s “endeavors”). But the film never achieves much momentum despite bursts of incredibly graphic violence that erupt with fairly predictable regularity (and even this violence was reportedly trimmed when the film was originally slated to be given the deadly X rating). Fans of the blood and guts elements of the Texas Chain Saw Massacre series will probably find enough of that viscera here to keep them “entertained”, but those looking for an innovative approach toward reinvigorating a supposed franchise may feel like too much has been cut from this particular enterprise.

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Warner Archive Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. With an understanding that this wasn't a hugely budgeted feature, and that large swaths of it take place either at night or in very dimly lit environments, this is an appealing looking transfer that maintains a nicely organic quality throughout, even when clarity and detail levels occasionally vary. As might be expected, the most consistent clarity and detail levels are in the opening daytime sequences in the wide open expanses of the Texas plains, and the bright sunlit environment helps to support a very natural looking palette, along with generally good detail levels. Even here, though, there are slight variances when the film drifts into Alfredo's shadowy office. When the film gets into its longer nighttime moments, there are passing deficits with shadow definition, and a general diminution in fine detail levels, but commendably no compression artifacts accrue and the grainfield continues to look natural. There are occasional minor focus pulling issues that probably invariably lead to a perception of softness.

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III sports an effective DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that actually doesn't feature as many "startle" effects as some might expect, but which exploits a variety of disturbing sound effects nonetheless, not the least of which is the menacing roar of the chainsaw. A lot of the film takes place out of doors, providing good opportunities for ambient environmental effects to be placed around the soundfield. Dialogue is cleanly rendered and well prioritized on this problem free track.

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Filmmaker Commentary includes director Jeff Burr, Gregory Nicotero (Special Makeup Effects), R.A. Mihailoff (Leatherface), writer David J. Schow, William Butler (Ryan), and New Line executive Mark Odesky. This is a really well done commentary that gets into a number of levels of the production, including New Line's involvement in trying to create a new franchise.


• The Saw is Family: Making Leatherface (480i; 27:58) is a surprisingly involving featurette documenting the project's genesis and execution (no pun intended). This comes with a warning that the piece includes graphic imagery, some of which turns out to be crime scene photos from the Ed Gein case.


• We Know What to do with Them Parts. . .Deleted Scenes Documentary (480i; 9:45) features director Jeff Burr going over some of the bit and pieces (so to speak) that didn't make it into the final film.


• Alternate Ending (480i; 5:20)


• Trailer (1080p; 1:12)

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III may be for franchise completists more than the general public. There is some undeniably graphic and disturbing material here, but the film tends to work only in fits and starts. Technical merits are solid for those considering a purchase, and the supplementary package is very enjoyable.