Butcher Boys

Alas, another great indie horror film with a ridiculously low rating on IMDb. This means that fans of the genre will possibly overlook this insanely terrifying and deliciously, bizarre horror film. The genius behind the original Texas Chainsaw, Kim Henkel is responsible for this film, which is referred to as the 'spiritual sequel' to The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974). And to be completely honest with you, Butcher Boys does what none of the Chainsaw franchise could do. It terrified me exactly the way the original film did, which is pretty remarkable. The flow of Butcher Boys was so unexpected, that I was on edge the entire time, as well as feeling confused about what the hell was going on as I was decades ago when I watched TC- Massacre for the first time. Do not listen to any of the other critics or haters in regards to this film. I am completely annoyed by the ignorant reviews that badmouth this great indie. If you love horror/thriller films that focus on making you feel a combination of fear and confusion, then you will have a real good time with Butcher Boys. My only issue with this film is the sound editing. There were way too many scenes where the dialogue was drowned out by other sounds; it was very frustrating. But that's still not enough to disregard this very entertaining film. I also want to point out that this film had 9 cameo appearances by members of the original TC-Massacre franchise, which is pretty bad-ass for fans of the original. I think this was a really great bizarre horror film that shouldn't be missed by fans of indie horror. If you do decide to give this film a whirl and you love it as much as I did, please rate it on IMDb… It deserves a much higher rating!

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Let me start off by saying that I am in no way associated with the film - nor do I believe the other positive reviews to be. I simply had to make this my first review due to how shocked I am of the rating here.

Is this the next cult classic for horror films? Absolutely not. Was I thoroughly entertained the ENTIRE film? YES.

Make no mistake about it - this is definitely a rehashed TCM script that the writer augmented after reading a book he enjoyed. People are comparing this the Chainsaw Massacre because it feels remarkably similar. You are fooling yourself if you feel otherwise.

The plot is ripe with loose ends...and it definitely gets wacky at the end, but that's alright. Because its entertaining. TCM3D was one of the worst films I watched this year... perhaps the worst actually. Butcher Boys has solid acting for the most part, interesting characters, and truly nonstop engagement. Seriously ..its impressive if you think about it.

I am a horror movie fan. In fact, I watch damn near exclusively horror films. I passed on this one several times due to the lower rating here on IMDb. I watched because I simply had nothing else, and I am very glad I did. It's a move I will certainly be revisiting due to its tense yet "fun" (i suppose) nature.

So what even is happening in this movie? All of the actors are ridiculous, and the music is TOO over the top. So many of the fighting scenes are obviously fake and this movie is a waste of 10 GTR's if you ask me. No but seriously, it's so bloody weird, and I've seen all scary movies before. Please don't even waste your precious time watching this crap. Just when you think it's about to end, some more weird stuff happens. There's a mutant thing that keeps making noise and is just horribly distracting. I'm pretty sure it's about weird cannibals, but I don't even know. The movie skips to different scenes way too quickly, and when the bad guys get shot they don't even get hurt !

Plus the booby scenes aren't real :(

Four kids out for some fun upset the wrong gang of cannibal greasers and are chased around a city at night while being picked off one by one. The script for Butcher boys was written by the writer of the original Texas chainsaw massacre with most of the ideas from that movie being regurgitated here only slightly tweaked. Several scenes are reused which dampens the impact as you've seen it before. It also borrows from other films most notably Judgement night.

In its favour Butcher boys does have a pleasingly nihilistic tone as once the film gets going nothing is explained. Who are these rockabilly cannibals? Why are the cops scared of them? Just what is that weird restaurant/gentlemans club they're running all about? But the tentative approach to the violence portrayed is at odds with the gonzo storytelling. Apart from two or three slightly graphic scenes the blood and gore is fairly minimal. This could be due to budget constraints. If I so I would have maybe saved the money spent on the constant nighttime aerial shots and spent that money on more prosthetic effects. A little more violence would have pushed this film up another notch on the crazy level making it that little bit more memorable. The nihilism does eventually reach it's apex in the finale when all hell breaks lose. Unfortunately this scene also turns a few things already set up in the film on its head. Making you question even further the lack of coherence.

I did find watching Butcher boys a fairly frustrating experience. I could definitely feel the opportunity for a good if not great movie in there somewhere. Visually it's very competent, it's well filmed and has a certain visual style all credit to the directors achieving this on a minimal budget. The sound and score are also strong. On the whole the performances are good with the odd exception. The problem lies mainly with the script, it borrows too much from other films, some of it could be classed as a knowing wink or nod to the writers previous work. Although had it been written by anyone else I think we'd be calling it plagiarism.

In the end I was left neither loving or hating the film hence the score. Maybe on a second viewing I'd like it more, but at the moment the only taste left in my mouth is vanilla.

I wasn't expecting to like this movie but watched it because I did appreciate "Wildman of the Navidad", directed by and produced by the same group, Greeks Productions and Boneboys Inc. This film was very bloody but why not, it is horror people! Kept me not wanting to watch another minute but not being able to turn it off. Not for the light of heart. Waiting for the new one "Red on Yella Kill a Fella". And if you haven't seen "Rio Peligroso: A Day in the Life of a Legendary Coyote (2004)" do yourself a favor and try to get a copy, it is hysterical. The horror movie genre started by innovators like George Romero working on a tight budget but a big imagination. I love to see what newcomers can do with a little money and a camera and these guys do not let me down! Keep on filming guys.