Texas Chainsaw Massacre Review: 5 Ups & 5 Downs

4. The Surprisingly Solid Production Values

A Texas Chainsaw Massacre sequel shot on a low budget in Bulgaria that ends up getting dumped on Netflix doesn't exactly invite high expectations for its production quality, but this is actually a surprisingly competently made picture.

Despite a few overly frantic editing hiccups, director Chris Thomas Devlin knows how to create a compelling and atmospheric image.

Courtesy of cinematographer Ricardo Diaz, this is a far more handsome film than prequel Leatherface, which was also shot in Bulgaria for budgetary reasons.

While a lot of Netflix Originals have an offputtingly overlit, un-cinematic aesthetic, Texas Chainsaw Massacre basically looks like a "real movie" you could imagine playing on a huge cinema screen.

The desolate town of Harlow is a neat and unexpected setting for the franchise, while the sound design makes the most of that primal chainsaw revving noise, and a brooding score from Colin Stetson (Hereditary) helps set the tone well. Also be sure to stick around for the surprisingly snazzy end credits.

Considering how many later sequels in classic horror franchises end up feeling like lazy cash grabs intended largely to prevent the rights reverting, this movie actually has a decent amount of effort put into its style.