The Toolbox Murders (2004): Leatherface for LA

The Toolbox Murders: Leatherface for LA

Tobe Hooper was a legendary and prolific horror director, but consistent in terms of quality was never the case. The only way to determine if a feature was his was through the utter chaos the picture provides. His remake of 1978's "The Toolbox Murders" is a prime example of this.

Nell cannot stand the Lusmar Arms, the building that hosts her new Los Angeles apartment. Nothing works, the renovations are moving along at a snail's pace, and all of her neighbors have an aura of creepiness surrounding them. It is also difficult to deal with the history of the building since the Black Dahlia lived one floor below, but the price is right at a $900 deposit and two rent-free months.

As the limited staff tries to restore this historical building, tenants are disappearing and the only one who seems to take notice of this are Nell and a former actor who has lived there for the past 60 years. After calling the cops twice for unfounded horrors she heard through the paper thin walls, everyone else residing there thinks she is nuts.

Using the clues provided by the elderly tenant and her fascination with the strange symbols through out the building, she is determined to find the missing tenants. The question is, can she handle who and what she will find?

Hooper's "Toolbox" takes a while to get going and its contradictory violence can frustrate, but it turns into a nice suburban homage to "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre".

The contradiction all lie in the gore. Women face gruesome demises, but Hooper cannot determine how far to take the brutality. If we are not going to clearly witness the drill going into her skull and out the other side, cut once we see the power tool and hear a final scream. Subtlety was what made his only true classic (I have not seen "Poltergeist".) so awesome.

Perhaps this was Hooper's intent. To pay respect to both of his "Massacres", violence committed against the men is so over the top which makes the third act a lot of fun. It is no "Life Force", but its fun especially with the twist the story provides.

If there was a little more gore to entice the audience, Tobe Hooper's "The Toolbox Murders" would be a made for DVD classic. I originally saw it on Fearnet (RIP), but it is available streaming at the lowest possible price (per JustWatch.com). At only 95 minutes, it is not too hard to be patient enough for this film be worth a view. The question is, can you handle the gore.

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