Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III

"Jeff Burr's Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III has never been looked too kindly upon, for all the right reasons -- funny then that New Line gave this such a grand DVD release. For a terribly flawed sequel to one of the seminal horror films of 1970s, the extras included on the disc are staggering. For starters, gore fans should be happy to know that both the rated and unrated cuts appear on the disc, so all of KNB's effects can now be seen digitally for the first time (the unrated VHS has been available for years). For those not familiar with the history of the film, the R-rated version is a complete mess and this DVD will tell you why. Often remembered for delivering little of the red stuff in the theatrical cut, here you can dig into two documentaries and one commentary on the hows and whys of the third film's turbulent production. From the infamous MPAA battles to New Line themselves sabotaging the film through their desperate need for another horror franchise (A Nightmare on Elm Street 5 had just come out and bombed), the fate of Leatherface is mapped out extensively through various candid interviews that fill the disc. From horror scribe David Schow to the many bits with director Burr, everyone featured has stories which paint a picture of a truly hindered production. The film itself is presented in its original 1.85:1 widescreen picture, while the audio benefits greatly from the remastered Dolby Digital EX 5.1 and DTS ES 6.1 Surround Sound tracks. To be sure, time was put into this release, as evidenced by the blood-red menus and the inclusion of an alternate ending and probably one of the best modern horror trailers out there -- the Lady of the Lake teaser for the film (which you get to hear the full story behind in the meat of the extras). If there's anything annoying about the disc, it's that the commentary track consists of the very same interviews which make up the lengthy ""The Saw is Family: Making of Leatherface"" documentary. With no scene-specific discussion, you end up sifting through a lot of the same talk repeatedly between the main two features of the DVD -- plus look out for Burr's comments on the chainsaw in the film, because you'll hear the exact same audio clip of it more than once! Gripes aside, New Line most assuredly should be praised for giving such high treatment to such horror dreck for which they themselves are partly to blame."