The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)

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Director: Tobe Hooper

Writer: L.M. Kit Carson

Stars: Dennis Hopper, Caroline Williams, Jim Siedow, Bill Moseley, Bill Johnson, Ken Evert, Harlan Jordan, Kirk Sisco, James N. Harrel

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A revenge-crazed Texas Ranger (Dennis Hopper) involves an ambitious overnight DJ (Caroline Williams) in his mission to hunt down the murderous Chainsaw family.

 


Director Tobe Hooper was wise to craft a sequel that didn’t try to repeat the original by striving for the same tone.

 


Where the first film was a gritty nightmare (although apparently Hooper lamented that audiences didn’t appreciate the comedy in it), the second is an absurdist exercise in excess that delights in pushing the limits.

 


The spectacle of chainsaw-wielding Dennis Hopper roaring through a surreal cannibal funhouse spouting Bible verses in a bat-shit crazy performance that echoes Blue Velvet's Frank Booth justified the price of admission when I first saw this film in the theater back in the 80s and absolutely held up upon a recent rewatch.
























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