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There’s
a nice section on the genesis of TCM 2 which is packed with
trivia, Hooper’s forced acceptance to direct, the butchering
of the script and the nightmare that ensued with backers/distributors
Cannon Films when it came to funding, final edit and promotion.
It paints a picture of Hooper as someone incredibly creative
yet unable to function under rules or in the hierarchy of
the film business. Examples of his poor decision making and
business handlings are mentioned and even goes so far as to
suggest he could’ve had a more plentiful career had
he not been so easily-led. Cannon are typically seen as the
tyrannical movie financiers they were who, having been scarred
by heavy investments in previous Hooper flops LIFEFORCE and
INVADERS FROM MARS, bullied Hooper into directing on a turgid
schedule just so they could meet a deal to sell the product
to the lucrative Eastern and European markets. Contributions
by Bill Moseley, Bill Johnson (Leatherface), Caroline Williams,
Jim Siedow and writer Kit Carson offer an insight into the
troubles of the film’s making and reckless editing as
Cannon removed final cut from Hooper and turned out a product
no one was happy with.
Same attention is given to TCM3. More troubles
abound here with scripting, censorship boards, director choice
and final cut. Deja vu. There’s an insightful interview
with screenwriter David J. Schow where he talks about his
intention to take the series back to its origins and how studio
interference prevented. This section is lighter on contributions
than the previous two movies but is filled with straight to
the point facts about their making and hereditary problems.
Gives the impression that there was a higher power working
to keep the first movie sacred.
TCM4 or
‘The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ comes
next with more interviews, insights and contributions. Kim
Henkel talks at length as to why he got involved, how he felt
pressured to do it, the disastrous and subsequent legal action
taken against distributor Columbia Pictures and the ‘problem’
of having stars Renee Zellwegger and Matthew McConaughey rise
to fame before the films release. This makes for a good read
especially for those conspiracy theorists out there. The Gein,
documentaries, and ‘Headcheese’ sections are interesting
without going into too much detail which overall serve the
book well.
The main
problem I had was the authors’ style. It reads like
an interview transcript. A question is posed and then various
people offer their answers that are transcribed word-for-word,
prefixed by their respective names. Jaworzyn chips in here
and there with the odd paragraph backing up or correcting
the facts, but the overall style just feels uncomfortable.
There’s still plenty on offer here and it was a nice
idea to get the facts right from the participants but I didn’t
warm to it, call me a purist!
Would
I recommend this book?
If you are a TCM fan then you should already have it but if
you’re a regular horror movie fan, or someone with a
passing interest in TCM, then I think you’ll find the
sections that deal with the movies very interesting indeed.
If you can adjust to the style of writing and don’t
mind the odd seemingly irrelevant section then go for it.
Not the best companion to a movie franchise but a very nice
compliment to THE SHOCKING TRUTH documentary and certainly
worth a read.
3 out of 5 chainsaws!!!
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