WHY THE ORIGINAL BOOGEYMEN JUST CAN NOT DIE……………….
Despite a critical mauling by our very own Matt and many rumbling’s of hate by long time fans, LeatherFace is enjoying his spell back in the limelight thanks to the runaway success of the all new Texas Chainsaw film.
A staggering $10.2m box office figure for its opening night has caused ripples in the horror genre, a strong showing considering the film was given a dreaded 18 rating, a policy that for the last few years has been put aside by the film companies who were more concerned in getting more people to see their film and so watered down the content to suit a more teen audience.
The mouth watering figure has raised a few eyebrows and all of a sudden it seems that old fashioned horror is back in the game after years of endless “found-footage!” and of course Paranormal Activity kind of scares.
So why such a huge success for a film that has only received a few positive reviews?
You could probably trace the answer back to the title and its lead character! TEXAS CHAINSAW is a mega franchise in the horror field, all thanks to the Tobe Hopper original that was banned for years in the UK and even now is rightly regarded as a horror classic. What with the return of Leather Face, a character up there in the vaults of all time horror greats, the film was never destined to fail once shooting began and even though many knew in their heart that it had no chance of even getting close to the film that started it all, it was still going to be a blast in seeing the character we all love back on the big screen.
And that is why such horror icon’s like LeatherFace will never ever die. The Ultimate Boogeymen who throughout many films meet their maker at the hands of the last standing female, but somehow come back to kill again, is a trait we horror fans are so used to seeing over the last few years.
How many times have we witnessed Jason back in the pits of Camp Crystal Lake or Michael getting shot over and over, only for them both to rise again, to star in yet another film where blood and carnage is the name of the game.
Critical fans of horror moan that endless films of the same nature is killing the genre and that its time for some new ideas and while you can see their reasons, they do actually miss the point. Being a filmmaker and wanting to make a horror film, you can only dream of creating a character that would stand the test of time.
Harking back to the days when Dracula and Frankenstein were the main stars of horror, fans back then couldn’t wait to see their next film because they simply wanted to be scared again and the names of those two even now bring a curious glance to the modern horror fan who want to see these two icons back on the big screen.
Even now, despite the mess of the remake sequel Halloween 2, there are fans who are desperate to see Michael Myers take one more trip to Haddonfield. You would think after many poor sequels and remakes that us fans would have had enough, but just seeing Michael back in action would be worth the wait. Yes we be excited, like a little child and we sit in hope that the film even gets close to what Carpenter achieved, we know it can’t, but for those 90 minutes or so, we be a happy horror fanatic and then bitch about how crap the film was afterwards.
Horror is not just about being scared and taken to a dark place! Yes its a strange thing to say and many might read that statement and start to shake their head, but let me explain!
Its also about being entertained and when you manage to create a bogyman so rich and in tune with the audience, then we, the horror fan are a fickle bunch. Why have the need to be scared when you just enjoying the character you love having fun.
Chucky, Freddy, Jason, Michael, Leatherface are the ultimate icons of modern horror. How many of us are excited for the impending new The Curse Of Chucky film? How many would run to the cinema on the opening night if it was announced that Robert Englund was returning as Freddy.
Yes, some of the characters over recent years have been remade and in some cases very badly, but what the “new vision” did and what was totally misplaced is that they made them too dark and just not enjoyable.
If news came out that Jason was going to return in Friday 13th Part VIIII : He’s back again…… then the huge fan base would roar in approval. Even our very own Matt must agree that despite his hate for the new Texas Chainsaw film, for one moment it must have been great to see the great big Leatherface back.
Instead of moaning about this old icons being remade and blah blah blah…….maybe its time to cherish what we have got. I for one will never tire of seeing these bad boys murder and butcher young virgins. I will never get bored if Michael decides to track down Laurie for one last time and why?
Because I love horror and without these icons then I probably wouldn’t even love the genre as much as I do! Yeah, Texas Chainsaw 3D might not be a good film, but I tell you something……those that are moaning now will be right back there when the next film of the franchise is released simply because these bogeymen will never ever die….
“It was the Bogeyman?”
“As the matter of fact…..it was…….and always will be!……”
In a way it surprises me that people will cherish these memories of a slasher golden age but then complain about remakes. The entire slasher movement seemed like a series of filmmakers making a quick buck by essentially ripping each other off (such movies as The Burning, My Bloody Valentine or The Prowler may be entertaining movies, yet they rigidly stick to a formula established elsewhere) and of these franchises the remake is RARELY the weakest entry in the series. I remember when the new nightmare of elm street came out to terrible reviews, yet it’s still better than part 4-6 if nothing else. I think some genre fans are overly protective of franchises that long since lost their dignity. The new chainsaw masacre may not be as good as a the first, but ultimately so what? It can be any worse than the second or fourth entries to the series (or even the begining)?
I love horror.That’s why i hate most remake’s.
remakes dont bother me..they dont take anything away and with abit of luck they add something. at worst they at least give younger audiences a reason to check out the original.
Nice to see you back Hughes, and yes, even though I thought Texas Chainsaw 3D was a great big pile of shite, I will be first in line to see the next one. Sadly, we horror fans are suckers and as you said: we will bitch and moan but so long as we have are favourite boogeyman returning, we are always willing to give them “one last go”. Whether fans love or hate Texas Chainsaw, it is encouraging to see it top the US box office, and it is quite heart warming to see these villains who have been around for some forty years, to still be relevant.