The Texas Chainsaw Massacre appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. The Dolby Vision transfer consistently satisfied.
Sharpness looked very good, with only a smattering of slight soft wider shots. Overall delineation seemed accurate and concise.
I saw no issues connected to jagged edges or shimmering, and I also detected no signs of edge haloes. Grain seemed natural, and the movie lacked any examples of print flaws – well, if we don’t count the scenes that went for “intentional degradation” to evoke the 1974 Massacre.
Massacre gave us a pretty restricted palette to match the setting, and that meant an emphasis on burned-out ambers and drab greens. Within visual choices, the colors looked solid, with added range from HDR.
Blacks seemed deep and dense, while the many low-light shots offered appealing clarity. HDR brought extra punch to whites and contrast. This ended up as a solid presentation.
Massacre didn’t present a tremendously ambitious DTS-HD MA 7.1 soundfield, but the audio seemed to accentuate the visuals well. Most of the time the sound stayed focused on the forward channels, so rear usage concentrated mainly on ambient material.
The film used the surrounds to bolster the feeling of eeriness and intensity. In the front, the track showed good stereo music and presented various elements in a logical and natural manner.
The elements blended neatly and created a seamless sense of the environment. Not too many standout moments occurred, but the track remained smooth and engaging at all times.
Audio quality also seemed positive. Dialogue consistently appeared natural and crisp, with no edginess or intelligibility issues on display.
Music was clear and dynamic. The score seemed broadly reproduced and complemented the mix nicely.
Outside of occasional gunshots and the titular chainsaw, effects mostly stayed in the low-key realm, but they always were distinctive and concise, and the mix boasted fine clarity for the louder moments.
Bass response always seemed rich and firm. The mix lacked the ambition to reach “A” level, but it earned a solid “B+” as a fine soundtrack.
How did the 4K UHD compare with the original Blu-ray? Although the Arrow release added a 7.1 option to the BD’s 5.1, I didn’t experience any clear improvements sonically between the two.
On the other hand, the UHD’s Dolby Vision presentation brought the usual upgrades. The UHD looked better defined and offered superior blacks, colors and contrast to become a step up over the already solid BD.
By the way, the fact I thought the UHD looked better than the Blu-ray might make the latter’s “A-“ for visuals and the former’s “B+” confusing. I gave the UHD the slightly lower grade simply because the format accentuated some minor softness the BD obscured.
Make no mistake: the UHD worked better than its 2K predecessor. But I enter UHD releases with higher expectations so that left me with a slightly lower grade even though I thought this release was clearly the superior visual representation of the two.
The Arrow 4K UHD mixes old and new extras, and we find a whopping four audio commentaries, the first three of which appeared on the prior release. To start, we hear from producer Michael Bay, director Marcus Nispel, executive producers Andrew Form and Brad Fuller, and New Line co-chairman/co-CEO Robert Shaye.
All five recorded their comments separately, and the results got edited into this non-screen-specific piece. Expect information on a wide variety of topics here.
Among other subjects, we learn about the genesis of Bay’s production company, how Nispel got the gig and his background, issues connected to adapting a horror classic, casting and the work of the actors, and stories from the set.
That’s just a sampling of what you’ll hear, however, as I can’t cover everything in this brisk and informative piece. It’s consistently blunt and engaging as it gives a good look at many areas of the production.
For the second commentary, we hear from director Marcus Nispel, cinematographer Daniel Pearl, production designer Greg Blair, art director Scott Gallagher, supervising sound editor Trevor Jolly, and composer Steve Jablonsky. As with the prior “essay”, this one recorded the speakers separately and cut them together for the edited track.
Not surprisingly, the focus here remains on the nuts and bolts of the filmmaking. We learn a little about topics like the participants’ prior familiarity with the original Massacre, the set design and location scouting, the use of the bleach bypass process on the film and other cinematographic issues, the score and the audio.
Some of the subjects receive particular exploration. For example, we get good details about the chainsaws used as well as the movie’s main house.
The track seems a bit dry at times, and it probably offers the least exciting of the three. Nonetheless, it presents a solid examination of the appropriate subjects and gives us a fine exploration of the technical issues.
The final “archival” commentary features director Marcus Nispel, producer Michael Bay, screenwriter Scott Kosar, executive producers Brad Fuller and Andrew Form, and actors Jessica Biel, Erica Leerhsen, Eric Balfour, Jonathan Tucker, Mike Vogel, and Andrew Bryniarski.
As with the other two “essays”, these present separately conducted chats that get spliced together. It’s a useful and informative piece on a par with the “Production” commentary.
Kosar dominates as he discusses his script. We learn how he got the gig, some of his early ideas, and variations made to the original document.
We also learn a little more about casting as well as characters, development, the historical background with Ed Gein, criticism and comparisons with the original, and other issues. The track seems brisk and engaging as it covers its material.
New to the Arrow set, we get a commentary with film historians Steve “Uncle Creepy” Barton and Chris MacGibbon. Both sit together for a running, screen-specific discussion of the Massacre franchise, other genre domains and their view of this 2003 update.
Much of this leans toward a general appreciation of the film. While some decent notes emerge and the conversation always remains pleasant, I can’t claim the new track offers much real meat.
Within “Archive Extras”, we get components from the prior releases. Severed Parts: presents its seven deleted scenes via a 16-minute, 42-second piece that shows the scenes, sometimes compares them to the bits in the final product, and also includes remarks from director Marcus Nispel.
He gives us some background and indicates why the snippets got the boot. Some interesting material appears here, primarily via an alternate opening and ending. We also see a little more gore and some additional character exposition, primarily related to Erin and Kemper.
Three screen tests appear. We get clips for Jessica Biel (3:24), Eric Balfour (3:06) and Erica Leerhsen (0:47).
These are always fun to see, and this package is no exception. We get a nice look at the actors’ audition footage, especially since both Biel and Leerhsen do some freak-out shots.
For a general look at the film, we head to Chainsaw Redux: Making a Massacre. In this one-hour, 16-minute, nine-second documentary, we discover remarks from director Nispel, producer Michael Bay, cinematographer Daniel Pearl, film critic Joe Bob Briggs, screenwriter Scott Kosar, executive producers Brad Fuller and Andrew Form, art director Scott Gallagher, production designer Greg Blair, New Line co-chairman/co-CEO Robert Shaye, special effects makeup designer Scott Stoddard, special effects makeup Grady Holder, composer Steve Jablonsky, supervising sound editor Trevor Jolly, and actors Mike Vogel, Erica Leerhsen, Jessica Biel, Andrew Bryniarski, Eric Balfour, Jonathan Tucker, and R. Lee Ermey.
We go through reflections on the original, fan resistance, approach to the remake, Bay’s teaser, Nispel’s background, casting, the film’s visual look, production constraints, storyboards, locations and sets, prop and mask design, specific about the Leatherface look, Nispel’s directorial approach, practical effects, various notes from the shoot, editing and sound, music, promotion and ratings issues.
If you’ve listened to the commentaries, you probably won’t learn a ton of new info here. Still, we get a reasonable amount of fresh material, and the addition of visuals helps.
For instance, we hear about problems with the opossum and get to see these. Despite some repetition, “Redux” acts as a good recap of the production and seems like a tight and briskly paced program.
After this we head to Ed Gein: The Ghoul of Plainville. A look at the serial killer whose exploits influenced Massacre and other dark fare, this 24-minute, 17-second program includes information from forensic psychologist Dr. John K. Russell, author Harold Schechter, author David Skal, and Psycho screenwriter Joseph Stefano.
They thoroughly cover the history of the Gein case. They go over the tenor of the era in which he operated, his personal background, his gruesome actions, and their legacy, mainly as reflected in motion pictures.
The mass of archival materials makes this piece less than pleasant to watch at times – some nasty shots appear on screen – but this is nonetheless a concise and well-executed look at Gein. Most of us have some acquaintance with his story through the various movies, so it’s fascinating to check out more about him, and “Ghoul” does so well.
Cast & Crew Interviews fills a total of 17 minutes, 50 seconds and splits into eight segments. We hear from Jessica Biel (3:17), Eric Balfour (2:02), Jonathan Tucker (1:45), Erica Leerhsen (1:28), Mike Vogel (2:19), R. Lee Ermey (2:06), Marcus Nispel (2:45) and Brad Fuller/Andrew Form (2:11).
Across these, the participants cover story/characters, cast and performances, and a few other nuggets. Recorded during the production, the comments tend to feel fluffy
With Behind the Scenes, we locate a nine-minute, 22-second reel that shows glimpses of the sets. Though brief, this becomes a good view of the shoot.
Two Concept Art galleries appear: “Production Concept Art” (10 frames) and “Leatherface Concept Art” (13). Both are short compilations but useful nonetheless.
Some ads finish the set. We get eight TV spots, a theatrical trailer and a Michael Bay teaser trailer.
After a text opening, the last one mostly runs a dark screen with the sounds of a chase and attack. It’s damned effective.
As we hit extras new to the Arrow 4K UHD, we get a collection of seven Deleted Scenes that span a total of nine minutes, 33 seconds. This package includes the same sequences from “Severed Parts” but they run without interruption and also offer superior picture quality, so they’re a worthwhile update.
Five segments pop up under “New Interviews”. Reimagining a Classic goes for 16 minutes, 25 seconds and gives us ore from Marcus Nispel.
The director discusses his view of the 1974 movie and his take on the property as well as aspects of the production, influences and related areas. I don't think Nispel adds a ton that we don't get elsewhere, though his look at the film more than 20 years later adds some perspective.
Shadows of Yesteryear occupies 16 minutes, 54 seconds. It comes with info from Daniel Pearl.
The cinematographer tells us about how he reprised his role on the 1974 flick along with his work on the remake. He provides a solid little summary.
After this we go to The Lost Leatherface. During this 15-minute, 17-second apiece, we find remarks from actor Brett Wagner.
The actor originally cast to play Leatherface, Wagner got recast after a day due to an injury. He gives us an intriguing look at what he did as well as What Could Have Been.
Masks and Massacres fills 18 minutes, nine seconds. It gives us statements from Scott Stoddard.
The program discusses his view of the 1974 movie along with his makeup effects work on the remake. Stoddard digs into these efforts well.
Finally, we move to Chainsaw Symphony. In this 19-minute, one-second interview, we hear from composer Steve Jablonsky.
As expected, the featurette digs into Jablonsky's score for the 2003 movie as well as some other aspects of his career. He delivers solid notes about these topics.
The set ends with an Image Gallery that offers 73 stills that mix movie shots, behind the scenes photos and prop details. It winds up as a decent collection.
Perhaps because I didn’t think much of the original 1974 film, I rather liked the 2003 Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The remake lacked the prior flick’s feeling of verisimilitude but it presented a tighter, more engrossing and effective affair overall. The 4K UHD presented very good picture and sound plus an extensive roster of supplements. This becomes a terrific 4K UHD for a surprisingly good movie.
