Welcome to Knockout Horror and to day five of our 31 Days of Halloween 2024 feature. We are checking out an absolute horror classic today with Tobe Hooper’s 1974 low budget horror hit The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. It is the 50 year anniversary so what better time than now? Starring virtually unknown actors Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Gunnar Hansen and Allen Danziger. This movie proved to be an absolutely huge hit. Grossing over $30 million domestically on a budget of only $140,000. Nobody expected it to do as well as it did but it wasn’t without its struggles.
A horrendous shoot that involved long days of up to 30+ hours filmed indoors on blisteringly hot days tried the actor’s patience. But, when it came to distribution, the harrowing content of the film made it almost impossible for Hooper to find anyone to carry the movie. Upon release, despite its massive success in the United States, it struggled to even screen abroad. Being banned in many countries. Some of which upheld the ban until the late 90s. In the 2020s, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is still considered to be one of the greatest horror movies of all time. But how does it hold up all those years later? The answer is, pretty damn well.
Still Fantastic
This review is going to be real short as there isn’t much I can say about this movie that hasn’t already been said. It still holds up fantastically well. In fact, I would say that, thanks to movies like Ti West’s X, it feels even better now than it did 20 years ago. The effusive praise for movies like X is likely to lead some younger horror fans to believe that West invented the style. Not realising that all West does is rip off directors from the 70s and 80s. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is one of those movies that he copied, particularly in the aforementioned X which is incredibly similar in style and presentation.
This is a movie which inspired a generation of horror directors. The oh so familiar “young group of friends being killed off one by one” was established right here and in horror movies to follow like 1978’s Halloween. It’s difficult to understate the importance of this film. What’s all the more impressive is just what Hooper managed to achieve with such a small budget. There was virtually no money to work with, here. Actors worked for buttons and set designers had to be creative to make the most of what they had. Even down to the point of borrowing animal corpses from the local vet. Grizzly stuff but very effective.
Unnerving and Genuinely Scary
Hooper gets creative throughout. Camera shots place the viewer as a fellow passenger on the journey through the sweltering Texas heat. Keeping you close to the action and always within touching distance of either the characters or antagonists. Shots are constantly active, rarely staying static and moving around with the action in an almost voyeuristic manner. Constantly searching for the best angle. Hooper utilises some serious creativity when it comes to scares. Briefly focusing on unimportant parts of the shot before flicking back to reveal the terrifying Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen) emerging from the background to unleash hell.
It works so damn well. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is still legitimately unsettling. There is no motive behind the chaos here. The teens are just walking into a slaughterhouse with no knowledge of what they are in for. The crazy thing is, this movie is really lacking in gore. Kills are sometimes off-screen and sometimes just played off as a fact of life. Almost unimportant. A fact that makes them all the more disturbing. The sight of a character convulsing on the floor after being hit with a hammer is still one of the most savage, remorseless, disturbing and effective in horror history. Every kill is impactful, despite Hooper never really dwelling on them.
It goes without saying that The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a truly iconic horror movie. A lot of that is down to Leatherface but much of the credit has to go to the direction and cinematography. The site of Leatherface wildly swinging his chain saw around above his head is unforgettable and does an amazing job of summing the movie up in one moment of visual chaos. It is just one of the many iconic moments that will stick with you long after watching. This movie is pure, unfiltered, unapologetic chaos. Awesome stuff!
Should You Watch The Texas Chain Saw Massacre?
You should definitely watch The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. It is a hugely important horror movie that has been influencing horror film makers for 50 years. Sure, time has done a bit of a number on it. It looks old and is a bit cheesy in parts. But it is as important a horror movie as any and holds up well today. It is unsettling, disturbing, and will stay with you. What Tobe Hooper, and the team, achieved with virtually no budget is incredible. They made a movie that, likely, changed the face of horror forever. How many can say that?
