1. Texas Chainsaw 3D (Lionsgate, 2,654 Theaters, 92 Minutes, Rated R): Some of you might be saying, “Hey! Didn’t they just reboot this franchise a couple years ago? Why are they rebooting it again?” Well, this film is not a reboot. Okay, it is a reboot of the reboot (which, by the way, came ten years ago, if you can imagine), but it’s not a reboot of the original.
Confused? Okay, this film is a sequel to the 1974 Tobe Hooper original. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It is a reboot in the sense that it ignores the 2003 remake and its 2006 prequel (and also the two already existing sequels to the original film), but it is not a complete starting over from square one.
So, for all those sixty somethings that were hoping for a better continuation of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre story, here’s another go at it. If you only know the 2003 remake, well, you’re on your own.
2. Promised Land (Focus Features, 1,675 Theaters, 140 Minutes, Rated R): Many of you living in other parts of the world may be unfamiliar with the practice of fracking. Living in the Northeast U.S., I can tell you that fracking, the process of drilling for natural gas deposits in the ground, is a hot button topic.
Proponents of the practice say it gives us access to a cheap and plentiful energy source, one that will aid us in ending our dependence on foreign oil. opponents say that the way the gas is collected does more harm to the environment that it is worth, that the trade off for cheap energy is areas that quickly become unlivable.
That is the issue handed by this film, which opens in wide release today, in a nutshell. And being that it is written John Krasinski and Matt Damon, both who star in the film, it will be probably be slanted in an anti-fracking viewpoint. So, if you think fracking is a good idea, this film will probably irritate you. If you are against fracking, this film will be preaching to the converted. If you are undecided on the issue, a cursory search on the Internet about the topic would probably suit you better than sitting through this 2+ hour piece of propaganda. Unless, of course, you have seen the four other films Damon did with Gus Van Sant and want to complete the set.
