Hooper knew that this would be a hotly anticipated sequel and that he couldn’t just do more of the same. In fact, both movies are made better simply for having the other one exist, and approach the subject matter in a different tone. It’s not to say that one is better than the other. Chop Top (Bill Moseley) is a big part of this, who’s just as hilarious as he is terrifying in it! While the second one feels much more like a Hollywood film, but also has a strong self-aware sense of humor to it. It has a real grindhouse feel to it, and at times you’d almost believe you’re watching a real snuff film (especially during that dinner scene). It’s gritty, serious, and incredibly disturbing. The first one is a slasher classic that helped kick off the genre. But this barely scratching the surface because the two movies could not be more different.
So rather than feature another group of ill-fated young people happen upon the Sawyer family home in rural Texas, this movie features the Sawyers coming out into the world (which kind of makes them scarier). The Rage: Carrie 2 is all but a remake of the original, except for the fact that the events of the first movie are referenced.
The Hills Have Eyes was followed up with the same plot, but with soldiers this time instead of a family.
One very common pitfall with horror sequels (and sequels in general) is a tendency to essentially remake the first movie. This sequel very much has a life and identity of its own. In what very easily could have been another subpar sequel (that’s unfortunately very common), Hooper avoided falling into this trap and subverted everyone’s expectations in a particularly brilliant way. But that’s exactly what Tobe Hooper did when he directed the sequel to his own slasher classic, and gave us all The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 in 1986. Following up a genre-defining classic is no easy task, especially when that sequel is released 10+ years later.