Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

The original “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” was such a unique movie that it’s difficult to imagine any other version. But low and behold a remake was made in 2003, a version that takes a few of the original ideas and adds plenty of new ones to flesh out the story. I will admit that I enjoyed watching the 2003 version for what it is; a reboot of the series because as a remake, it simply pales in comparison and is in no way anywhere near as frightening or chaotic as the original. It’s still a strong movie if it was an original itself so its’ cruel to try and compare the two films too much.

Let’s break down some of the differences -

1.       The reason why they are in the middle of Nowhere, Texas.

In the original, siblings Sally and Franklin are checking out their grandfather’s gravesite because there has been a rash of grave robbing and other acts of vandalism at the cemetery. While they are in the area, Franklin convinces the group of friends (2 girls and 3 guys) to stop by his dad’s run down childhood home, which happens to be right next door to where Leatherface and his demented family live.

In the new version, the number of friends and their genders are the same but the names are different and no one is bound to a wheel chair. The group is coming back from Mexico after sneaking a piñata full of pot across the border to sell at a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert in Dallas.

2.       The hitchhiker.

In the original, the group picks up a weird looking guy who begins telling them about his family and their work in the slaughter houses before pulling out a knife and cutting himself. The group kicks him out and he retaliates by smearing blood over their van. He ends up being Leatherfaces brother.

In the new version, the group picks up a girl who begins freaking out when they drive in the direction of the house where Leatherface lives. She pulls out a gun and kills herself in the back seat.

3.       R. Lee Ermey. He’s not in the original and he makes the remake awesome!

These three points are enough to distinguish the two films because before R. Lee Ermey is introduced, the story takes a different path from the original. There is more expansion in the remake but just enough to keep it interesting and not overly explained.