Connect with us

News

Late to the Party: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

Published

on

texas chainsaw massacre

When Tobe Hooper tragically passed away, I was devastated. Poltergeist is one of my favorite horror movies, and it’s actually the film that got me into the genre to begin with. So did I feel like a fraud for having not seen the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre? Yes. But, I knew I had this article planned out, so I waited. For the sake of journalism. You’re welcome.

When it was finally time for me to watch The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, I lapped it up like a dehydrated dog after a long and sun scorched day.

I loved this movie. Normally, when a film has been hyped up for so long, it can be a bit of a disappointment when it comes time to finally watch it. It doesn’t always live up to the widespread cultural praise. But let me tell you, friends, this one did.

via IMDb

Whether intentional or not, the film makes a strong statement about the meat industry. The jobs that were once occupied by Leatherface’s family are rendered obsolete by technological advancements. Humans are given the same brutal and inhumane treatment as any animal that may find its way into a slaughterhouse – posing the idea that, deep down, we’re all just a bunch of meat sacks.

There’s a dichotomy between the earlier scenes of camaraderie between the characters as they blast down the highway in their crowded van, waxing on about Astrology (that pointedly acts as foreshadowing for the terrors to come), versus the manhandling of the victims as they fall prey to Leatherface. Their humanity is disregarded; they are simply hunks of flesh to be torn and consumed.

via Crave Online

Even though the brutality takes place off-screen, it’s still noted as one of the most horrific films of all time. By casting relatively unknown actors, Hooper ensured that the horror felt real. We connect with Sally because, to us, she is that character. We’re not watching some starlet scream as she feigns fear – we’re connecting with a terrified and exhausted stranger who frantically fights for her life.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre brought the idea of the hulking masked maniac to the forefront of the horror genre, dragging the modern scream queen along in his wake. It also gave us one of the rare instances of a paraplegic character who was not used for a plot gimmick. Franklin’s narrative is included because he’s a focal character, which is not a perspective we often see in horror films.

via IMDb

There are stories about the hellish experience of making the film (overwhelming temperatures mixed with unwashable costumes and decomposing animal carcasses really don’t mix), and now that I’ve seen it, I totally believe it. But there’s something so genuine about litetrally putting your blood, sweat, and tears into a movie. Everyone was fueled by passion – or likely, in some cases, misery – and it makes the final product so incredibly visceral and sincere.

This movie really stuck with me. I’ve somehow watched most of the sequels, and I had seen the remake, but going back to the roots of the whole thing with that informed history made me appreciate it even more, I think. The ending, in particular, is intense and chilling perfection. The pure desperation and manic terror is palpable. It makes me shiver, I love it so.

via The Film Rush

If you also have yet to see this incredible classic of a film, please, don’t wait any longer.

(As a side note, I’m a huge fan of True Detective (season one, of course), and I hadn’t realized how much of the Childress household is an homage to the farmhouse in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. But now I know. And I want to re-watch that series for the 10th time. So… I’m going to do that.)

 

To reach about how Ed Gein inspired The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, click here!

Stay tuned for next week’s Late to the Party with Jacob Davison!

Header image by Chris Fischer

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Movies

‘Invisible Man 2’ Is “Closer Than Its Ever Been” to Happening

Published

on

Elisabeth Moss in a very well-thought-out statement said in an interview for Happy Sad Confused that even though there have been some logistical issues for doing Invisible Man 2 there is hope on the horizon.

Podcast host Josh Horowitz asked about the follow-up and if Moss and director Leigh Whannell were any closer to cracking a solution to getting it made. “We are closer than we have ever been to cracking it,” said Moss with a huge grin. You can see her reaction at the 35:52 mark in the below video.

Happy Sad Confused

Whannell is currently in New Zealand filming another monster movie for Universal, Wolf Man, which might be the spark that ignites Universal’s troubled Dark Universe concept which hasn’t gained any momentum since Tom Cruise’s failed attempt at resurrecting The Mummy.

Also, in the podcast video, Moss says she is not in the Wolf Man film so any speculation that it’s a crossover project is left in the air.

Meanwhile, Universal Studios is in the middle of constructing a year-round haunt house in Las Vegas which will showcase some of their classic cinematic monsters. Depending on attendance, this could be the boost the studio needs to get audiences interested in their creature IPs once more and to get more films made based on them.

The Las Vegas project is set to open in 2025, coinciding with their new proper theme park in Orlando called Epic Universe.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Continue Reading

News

Jake Gyllenhaal’s Thriller ‘Presumed Innocent’ Series Gets Early Release Date

Published

on

Jake gyllenhaal presumed innocent

Jake Gyllenhaal’s limited series Presumed Innocent is dropping on AppleTV+ on June 12 instead of June 14 as originally planned. The star, whose Road House reboot has brought mixed reviews on Amazon Prime, is embracing the small screen for the first time since his appearance on Homicide: Life on the Street in 1994.

Jake Gyllenhaal’s in ‘Presumed Innocent’

Presumed Innocent is being produced by David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot, and Warner Bros. It is an adaptation of Scott Turow’s 1990 film in which Harrison Ford plays a lawyer doing double duty as an investigator looking for the murderer of his colleague.

These types of sexy thrillers were popular in the ’90s and usually contained twist endings. Here’s the trailer for the original:

According to Deadline, Presumed Innocent doesn’t stray far from the source material: “…the Presumed Innocent series will explore obsession, sex, politics and the power and limits of love as the accused fights to hold his family and marriage together.”

Up next for Gyllenhaal is the Guy Ritchie action movie titled In the Grey scheduled for release in January 2025.

Presumed Innocent is an eight-episode limited series set to stream on AppleTV+ starting June 12.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Continue Reading

Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

on

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Continue Reading