No
Avg. Critic Score: 38 out of 100 Generally unfavorable reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
17 not for kids
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 75
    Chicago Tribune | Robert K. Elder

    Has no pretensions about sneaking up on you -- it simply charges, motor humming and blades flying, carving the spot where masochism and entertainment meet. Read full review

  • 63
    Premiere | Addison MacDonald

    Manages to pull off an adequate amount of scares, when compared to most horror flicks in theaters this Halloween season. Read full review

  • 63
    ReelViews | James Berardinelli

    The film delivers with enough consistency to warrant a qualified recommendation for those seeking a few extra scares at this time of the year. Read full review

  • 60
    The Hollywood Reporter | Michael Rechtshaffen

    This particular reconceptualization actually does an impressive job of capturing the nasty dread of the original. It certainly is a vast improvement over those previous remakes/sequels. Read full review

  • 58
    Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman

    The gruesomely unnecessary remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is such a smorgasbord of slimy grunge that to call the movie gross wouldn't do it justice -- it's downright sticky. Read full review

  • 50
    Boston Globe | Wesley Morris

    As the eviscerations ensue, the truth becomes undeniable: This is easily the most gruesome, most pointless, episode of "Scooby Doo" ever. Read full review

  • 50
    New York Daily News | Jack Mathews

    Director Marcus Nispel, a rock video vet making his feature debut, knows how to ratchet up the tension. His remake is a far, far better-looking thing than the original. There's also more humor, especially in the over-the-top performance of drill sergeant-turned-actor R. Lee Ermey as the loudest of the inbreds. Read full review

  • 50
    San Francisco Chronicle |

    The remaining twisted population that likes this kind of movie will enjoy a horror film that is surprisingly stylish. Read full review

  • 50
    USA Today | Mike Clark

    The new version has a few jolts, some occasionally effective smoke-and-mirrors photography and a lead (7th Heaven's Jessica Biel) who could teach a grad course on walking provocatively in blue jeans. Read full review

  • 50
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    Chainsaw is produced by Michael Bay (Bad Boys I and II), which explains its soullessness. But nothing explains the flaw in this bad boy: How can a movie scare you when you’ve seen it all before? Read full review

View more reviews for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says not for kids Hard to do worse than this extremely gory mess.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this movie is not recommended for anyone under 17. Yes, kids love to be scared, but the violence here is so disturbingly realistic that it's too much for most older kids (and some adults) to handle. The various murders are definitely graphic (we get to see the flesh rip and the organs exposed) but the suicide scene is so disturbing that several people walked out of the theater immediately afterwards. Violence aside, there's still no reason to see this movie--the story doesn't make much sense, the acting is mediocre at best, and even at 98 minutes, it feels way too long. Bottom line: Save your money!
  • Families can talk about the amount and type of violence in this horror film, and some of the more graphic films of today. Do you think it's possible for young people, and even adults, to become desensitized to violence by watching really violent films?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: Dark, cruel sentiments throughout. Crude and tasteless humor ("I guess that's what brains look like--kind of like lasagna.")
  • rolemodels true0 Positive role models: You wouldn't want your kid acting like any of these characters.
What to watch for
  • violence false5 Violence: This is a very bloody and gory movie. There's an extremely graphic suicide scene, characters are hung from meat hooks (and then tortured), sliced, ripped, cut, shot, murdered in various ways, run over, etc. We see many severed limbs. Stabbings, impalings. The sheriff brags about sexually assaulting female corpses.
  • sex false3 Sexy stuff: Some crude sexual talk. A couple makes out. The camera lingers on a female character's wet tank top and backside.
  • language false5 Language: Nonstop extreme profanity.
  • consumerism false0 Consumerism: Not an issue
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false5 Drinking, drugs and smoking: The sheriff drinks and drives. The main characters smuggle and smoke marijuana.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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