I really enjoy alot of horror movies,it is a favourite genre of mine.So I thought I would make my first review about a film that embodies alot the reasons why I enjoy horror so much.
And that film is obviously The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.This review goes in depth about the film,so if you have not seen it then go and watch it,there are tons of videos on You Tube showing the movie in full.
Now onto the review.
The film is not only one of the most influential horror films ever made but is one of the most influential films in general. It paved the way for a new lease of horror films,the sub genre that has become known as the slasher genre. It created many of the staples for the slasher film,first and foremost a killer of some sort,usually wearing a mask,silent and carrying a melee weapon in this case a chainsaw. Another is young adults or teenagers are the main cast,that gets picked off one by one,until there is one last survivor who is usually female. Also another theme that is very present is the feeling of been trapped in that situation,that the killer is the absolute biggest threat.
The film opens up an introduction narrating which is basically the plot of the movie.Its almost documentary like,almost as if the film is chronicling actual events.It then shows multiple shots of a dead body being photographed.This entire sequence is incredibly effective and sets the tone of the entire film straight away.
To just see how effective the intro is,give it a watch for yourselves.
Finished now? Good.
Another really effective move that was made, was to claim that the film is true.By adding the tag line "What happened is true.Now the motion picture that's just as real." This was very effective indeed since even still today I have heard people claim the film is based on a true story and that Leatherface was/is real.I even had to make it clear to my older brother that none of this film actually ever happened,and that was really regarding the remake which obviously took that idea from the original
The character of Leatherface is based on the killer Ed Gein,who killed three people and robbed many graves.He created lamp shades out of human skin and did even fashion a mask made from human flesh.Link here for more info on him http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Gein
Speaking of Leatherface,he is portrayed by Gunar Hansen and is mentally challenged,another really quite interesting plot point is that,it is almost as if Leatherface is scarred of the people coming onto his home.
The rest of the family,The Hitch Hiker (played by Ed Neal),is picked up by the teenagers,he quickly shows that he is a few eggs short of a basket by cutting himself and harming one of them as well.He then wipes blood onto the van almost as if to mark it.Next up we have the gas station owner simply referred to as The Old Man who is also brilliantly portrayed by the late Jim Sideow,his character is one of my favourite parts of this move.Then there is the grandpa who almost looks like he was dead for a few years then came back alive again and then grandma who is a skeleton.
The family (the Sawyer family) view anyone else outside of their little clan as nothing more really than livestock,who are nothing more than something to be played with then killed and eaten.They have none of our concept of social standards,they have no value for human life.I think that is the most frightening thing about them,and that to them it is so normal and ordinary. The performances from the family are easily the best and most interesting. You could almost say that they are the American family gone wrong.
The film does not have that much gore,probably partly due to budgetary reasons.But it really does not need it the film is a horror film that just relies on the feelings it sets up,not the gore.The title and the way the film is may make some people think that there is more gore in it than there actually is even for people who may have seen it.
Overall I mean I could go on how this is one of the best horror films of all time,hell one of the best movies all time.It also paved the way for many other horror films.Any horror fan who has not seen it go watch it. Even if you aren't a horror fan Id recommend you watch it.
Its a unique film that has never nor will ever be replicated.Which is why the sequel was very different,which I also enjoyed,so I feel that the other sequels and remakes do fail in comparison to the original and the sequel,because they never tried to be original like they did with this one and the second one.
If there is a list of films to watch before you die if this is not on the list then that list is severely lacking.
Well I hope you enjoyed this rather lengthy review/waffle about this movie and I will review more horror films and whatnot when I feel the urge too.
So if you got this far without scrolling down,thanks for reading and as always comments and thoughts are much appreciated.
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