Yeah, apparently that is how you write the film’s title. I checked. Plus, it makes it easier to differentiate between this one and the 2003 Michael Bay produced rehash which uses the “chainsaw” version. Anyway, Halloween may be over for another year, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t scary things to celebrate- how about the 40th anniversary of a film considered one of the greatest horror films of all time?
So, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre focuses on the Hardesty siblings, Sally and Franklin (Marilyn Burns and Paul A. Partain), who travel with some friends in a van to investigate their grandfather’s grave amidst news of gruesome grave robbings and vandalism in the area. They pick up a hitchhiker (Edwin Neal) who turns out to be, to put it kindly, fucking mental and they soon kick him out, not knowing that was a mere teaser for the insanity to come. Plot wise it’s very simple. Most people will die, some won’t. It’s the classic slasher premise. There isn’t much more to say than that. Most of the cast are forgettable. Marilyn Burns is decent, although you will tire of her constant screaming towards the end. Paul A. Partain gives a nuanced performance as the paraplegic Franklin, which is unusual considering the time this was made and how it could have been so much worse. Edwin Neal is fun as the hitchiker and Gunnar Hansen gives my main man Leatherface some real character inbetween all the murderings.
So here’s the thing. I haven’t seen Texas Chain Saw Massacre for a long time. I remember it disturbing me back in the day. There’s something about the grotty aesthetic and unfathomable insanity of the characters that really has the potential to screw with you. Watching it back this time around, I realise I respect the film for what it is more than I like it. I don’t hate it or anything, but I respect it for its influence on countless slasher flicks to follow and sculpting modern horror. Before it, the majority of famous horrors were slick, handsome productions with an air of melodrama or theatricality to them. TCSM is kept real. Due to the low budget, there are no elaborate sets, there’s barely any music and everything is steeped in a grotty atmosphere and it’s effective. It’s surprisingly bloodless too, preferring to let the mind fill in the gaps rather than outright show. There’s one kill early on which is really understated and has stuck with me longer than any over-elaborate end in more recent films.
As is often the case with trailblazers, the formula has been taken, shaken down to base elements and experimented with for decades. As such it has inevitably been refined and improved on. As a horror, I don’t think it particularly holds up. The scares don’t really evolve past a man wielding a chainsaw. As a dark comedy (which was half the original intention anyway) it’s a blast, especially when Leatherface smears makeup over his mask and plays the stereotypical sitcom mother role when they all sit down to a grotesque dinner. The pro-vegetarian aspect of the film is interesting too. The central conceit being “what if humans were treated and butchered the same way animals are?”.
I can understand why Texas Chain Saw Massacre has stuck around in peoples’ memories. Despite having been ripped off numerous times by different films over the years, the main things that it gets right (monster and sparse blood) are still being ignored. With TCSM we have a monster with enough personality to be interesting, but not enough to be humanised and have the scare factor diminished- which is rarer than rocking horse droppings. Christ, 40 years later and there’s a prequel in the works right now simply called “Leatherface” and promises to focus on his teenage years. That “whoosh” you just heard was the disappointingly common sound of the point being spectacularly missed.
A review of Texas Chain Saw Massacre is largely pointless because I can’t imagine that many people in position of wanting to see it, but haven’t yet. It’s a seminal horror film and certainly looks and sounds the best it ever has with this restoration. Would I recommend it to people who haven’t seen it? Yeah, but with the caveat that they view it as a chance to see one of the most famous horror films ever, rather than a one-stop shop for terror.
[rating=3]
Ben Browne
Genre:Horror Distributor:Second Sight BD Release Date: 17th November 2014 (UK) Rating:18 Director: Tobe Hooper Cast: Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Allen Danziger Buy: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre: 40th Anniversary Restoration – 2 Disc Standard Edition [Blu-ray]
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