Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III

When Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III came out, I had high hopes for it because I didn’t like the second that much. It returned to being more serious which helped out a lot. And having Ken Foree and Viggo Mortensen definitely didn’t hurt it.

<img src="leatherface3.jpg" alt="Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III.">

Photo Credit: Nicolas Entertainment

Released: Jan 12, 1990

Runtime: 85 mins

Director: Jeff Burr

Writer: Kim Henkel, Tobe Hooper, David J. Schow

Actors: Kate Hodge, Ken Foree, R.A. Mihailoff

PLOT

A California couple, driving to Florida, unfortunately encounters the Sawyer family. Meanwhile a survivalist becomes tangled as well, as they all have to fight against the cannibals.

MY THOUGHTS

There are seven kills in Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. (Not including all the bodies they find in the pond that you see and hear about on the radio. Also, it is mentioned that Sally, survivor/final girl of the original movie, died a few years after the events she survived. I’m not counting her since it’s only mentioned and not seen.) Most of the family is killed by being shot. And again, we only get one chainsaw kill. So disappointing. But I think the best kill is Tex’s (Viggo Mortensen). He’s doused in gasoline and set on fire. 

Decent acting and not over the top like in the last movie. I thought the standouts were Viggo Mortensen as Tex and Ken Foree as Benny. In the beginning we get Tex as an aww shucks, good old boy who seems helpful and nice. Of course, not too much later, we get to see his true, dark side. On a side note, during the fight scene between Tex and Benny, Ken Foree accidentally broke Viggo Mortensen's ribs. You can see he clutches himself when he falls to the ground.

Ken Foree plays Benny, a survivalist, who is seeking revenge on the people who killed his friends. Originally Benny was supposed to die in the water, but during the test screening of the movie, the crowd really liked Benny so they shot an ending with Benny surviving. But, they didn’t have enough in the budget to fix the scene in the water, so they left it in even though it doesn’t make sense why he survives. Personally, I’m cool with it. I liked Benny.

A California couple is driving cross country to drop the car off. What we as the audience can see is that not all is well. There is tension between them. They get stopped by cops because of bodies found in a pond. They are warned not to stop for strangers. Eventually they get to a gas station and meet Tex who tells Ryan about a shortcut that would cut down their trip time. Meanwhile creepy Alfredo is spying on Michelle. Tex stops him and he brandishes a gun. Ryan and Michelle take off in the direction that Tex recommends. Unbeknownst to them, it’s a trap and they meet up with Leatherface and his family.

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Overall, not as good as the original but better than the 2nd movie. The humor was cut down so it was more serious again. There were some parts that were kind of slow but overall not too bad. Plus we get a young Viggo Mortensen and who doesn’t like that?

Did you know…:

  • Director Jeff Burr was fired toward the beginning of production. When nobody else accepted the job, he was rehired.

  • Caroline Williams reprises her role as Stretch from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986) in a cameo as a news reporter. Director Jeff Burr said he imagined Stretch becoming a reporter following the trauma she experienced in the second movie in an attempt to hunt down Leatherface.

  • Kane Hodder was the stunt coordinator for this movie. He was also R.A. Mihailoff's stunt double and played Leatherface in the trailer.

  • Ken Foree was in Rob Zombie's Halloween. Duane Whitaker and Caroline Williams were both in Rob Zombie's Halloween 2.

  • William Butler and Jennifer Banko were both in Friday The 13th 7: The New Blood.

  • William Butler was in the remake of The Night of the Living Dead, Ken Foree was in the sequel to the original 1968 classic Dawn of the Dead.

  • Film trailer was done even before they even had a director and before the production started.

  • The only Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie not filmed in Texas. It was filmed outside Los Angeles, California. 

  • Leatherface is never referred to as Leatherface. He's always referred to by his family simply as Junior.

  • There was actually a series of forest fires in Valencia, California, during filming. This prompted the crew to scramble and work hard to get the burnt forest out of the shots during filming. They even went to the extreme of not lighting the background so that the burnt-out trees would not be visible.

  • The poorest performing film in the series up until the release of Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation.

Have you seen the other The Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies? Check out my other reviews here: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Franchise.

Let’s get into the rankings:

Kills/Blood/Gore: 4/5

Sex/Nudity: 0/5

Scare factor: 3.5/5

Enjoyment factor: 4.5/5

My Rank: 3/5

IMDB: 5.1/10

Rotten Tomatoes: critics:  1.9/10  audience:  3.1/10

Letterboxd: 2.4/5