Director: Tobe Hooper
Writer: Kim Henkel, Tobe Hooper
Year: 1974

One of my great movie-watching shames was having never seen original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. At some point I actually saw the remake but never the 1974 version. After having finally watched it, I see what all the fuss was about.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a dismal movie. No, not in its quality but in what it presents to viewers. It begins with a semi-happy group of young adults trekking through the boonies. Upon getting to their destination, they can’t help but nose around and get mixed up with some seriously messed up neighbors. The film quickly turns into a bleak, terrifying experience.

I don’t know quite what it is that makes the film so effective, but a lot of it has to do with how unhinged the antagonists are. Leatherface, for example, does not come across as an invincible super being like many iconic horror villains. Yet, he’s clearly deadly. It feels more realistic, which lends itself to a much scarier story.

This movie had my stomach in knots for the minutes leading up to the first death. From then on, I couldn’t help but clench my jaw and simply stare at all that transpired. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre may be a 45 year old film but it definitely hasn’t lost its bite.