The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (entitled: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in Spain, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in Latin America, Texas Massacre in Venezuela, and El loco de la motosierra in Argentina and Uruguay) is a 1974 independent horror film produced, written and directed by Tobe Hooper. Its cast is made up of Marilyn Burns, Gunnar Hansen, Edwin Neal, Allen Danziger, Paul A. Partain, Jim Siedow and Teri McMinn. The story shows two brothers who travel with their friends to Texas in order to check the grave of one of their relatives, which, according to radio reports, had been desecrated. However, on the way they are attacked by a family of cannibals. The film was marketed as based on true events to appeal to a broader audience and to act as a subtle commentary on the political scene at the time; however, although Leatherface's character and some minor story details are inspired by Ed Gein's crimes, his plot is largely fictional.

Hooper produced the film for less than $140,000 and used a cast of relatively unknown actors, drawn primarily from central Texas, where the film was shot. The limited budget forced him to shoot every day of the week for many hours at a time in order to finish as quickly as possible and reduce the cost of prop rental. Due to the violent content of the film, he too had to struggle to find a distributor, but was eventually accepted by Louis Perano of the Bryanston Distributing Company. Hooper limited the amount of graphic violence in hopes of a PG rating, but the Motion Picture Association of America rated it R. The film faced similar difficulties internationally.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was banned in several countries, including Australia and the United Kingdom, and numerous theaters stopped showing the film in response to complaints of its violence. While it initially received mixed reviews, it grossed over $30 million in the United States and sold 16.5 million tickets in 1974. Since then, it has earned a reputation as one of the best horror films. He is credited with originating many common elements in the slasher genre, including the use of mechanical tools as murder weapons and the characterization of the killer as a large, heavy, faceless figure. It had a remake, five sequels and two prequels.

Plot

The actress Teri McMinn on the movie set.

Sally Hardesty (Marilyn Burns), her paraplegic brother Franklin (Paul A. Partain), and their friends, Jerry (Allen Danzinger), Kirk (William Vail), and Pam (Teri McMinn), are traveling down a Texas highway toward the cemetery after hearing on the radio that his grandfather's grave had been desecrated. After verifying that the grave is intact, they stop at a gas station, but the owner tells them that there is no fuel, so the young people decide to continue towards the old Hardesty house. Along the way, they pick up a hitchhiker (Edwin Neal), who tells them about his family who works at the old slaughterhouse. After taking a photo of Franklin, he asks for money, but the young men refuse to pay. After this, the subject burns the photo and cuts Franklin's arm with a knife. The group ejects him from the van, but the subject leaves a bloodstain on the side of the vehicle.

Arriving at the Hardesty farm, the young men begin to examine the place. As Kirk and Pam look for a place to swim, they hear a power generator at a nearby house. As Kirk enters the house to ask for fuel, he is attacked by a man, Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen), who hits Kirk over the head with a hammer. Pam enters the place looking for Kirk, but Leatherface attacks her and hangs her on a meat hook, forcing her to watch her tear Kirk to pieces. Sally, Franklin and Jerry begin to worry about the couple's absence, so Jerry goes looking for them. When he enters the house, he finds Pam inside a freezer, barely alive, but is killed by Leatherface, hitting him over the head with a hammer.

At nightfall, Sally and Franklin decide to go looking for the rest. As they walk in search of the others, they are attacked by the assassin, who attacks Franklin with a chainsaw, killing him. Sally escapes through the woods and reaches the gas station, where she asks her owner (Jim Siedow) for help, but the man captures her, gags her and takes her to the house where her friends had died. There she discovers that the gas station owner, as well as the hitchhiker, are Leatherface's brothers. The young woman is tied to a chair, while her grandfather (John Dugan), who practices cannibalism, tries to kill her with a hammer, but fails several times due to her weakness.

As the family members begin to argue, Sally escapes through a window. Leatherface and the hitchhiker chase her until they reach the highway, where a truck runs over the hitchhiker, killing him. The driver gets out to help Sally, but Leatherface chases after them with his chainsaw. The driver hits Leatherface over the head with a wrench, causing the killer to fall to the ground and gash his leg. The driver flees, followed by a pickup truck, which Sally climbs into the back of, the driver starts and they drive away, Leatherface waving his chainsaw through the air in fury and annoyance.

Cast

• Marilyn Burns like Sally Hardesty
• Allen Danziger as Jerry
• Paul A. Partain like Franklin Hardesty
• William Vail like Kirk
• Teri McMinn as Pam
• Edwin Neal like Nubbins Sawyer, the Autostopian
• Jim Siedow as Drayton Sawyer
• Gunnar Hansen as Leatherface
• John Dugan like Grandfather Sawyer

Production

Development

According to Tobe Hooper, the idea of including a chainsaw in a horror film came when he was in a crowded store, thinking of a way to cut his way through the crowd. Hooper decided to shoot the film early from the 1970s, when he worked as a professor at the University of Austin and as a documentary cameraman. One of the main themes he decided to touch on in the film was isolation.The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is based on the crimes committed during the fifties by serial killer Ed Gein in Wisconsin. Gein has been the inspiration for numerous films, such as Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960), William Girdler's Three on a Meathook (1972) and The Silence of the Lambs (1991) by Jonathan Demme. The film's script was written by Hooper and Kim Henkel in approximately three weeks.

Tobe Hooper and Kim Henkel created a corporation called Vortex, Inc., with Henkel as president and Hooper as vice president. Bill Parsley, a friend of Hooper's, was asked if he was interested in financing the film; Parsley created a company called MAB, Inc. and invested $60,000 in the tape. As a result, MAB took 50% ownership of the film and its future earnings. Producer Ron Bozman announced to some actors and workers that they would receive only a portion of his salary until he was able to sell the film. Vortex even divided the future profits of the company among those who participated in the project; percentages ranged from 0.25% to 6% for each person. However, due to a misunderstanding between the company and the employees, they were never informed that Vortex only owned half of the film, causing the assigned percentages to lower its estimated value.

During the editing process for the film, Henkel and Hooper went over budget. The P.I.T.S. donated $23,532, in exchange for 19% of future Vortex profits. This left Henkel and Hooper owning 45% of Vortex, with the remaining 36% held by the actors and people on the crew. Warren Skaaren joined the project as a new Hooper and Henkel partner, taking 15% of the company; Skaaren also received a salary of $5,000 and 3% of total future earnings. David Foster, producer of the horror film The Thing (1982), had arranged a private screening of the film with executives from the Bryanston Distributing Company, receiving in return 1.5% of Vortex's profits and a sum of $500 dollars.

On August 28, 1974, Louis Periano of the Bryanston Distribution Company offered Bozman and Skaaren a $225,000 contract and 35% of the profits from the film. Years later, Bozman commented, "We made a deal with the devil, and I think, in a way, we got what we deserved." Bryanston's contract was signed. After the investors got their money back (including interest), Skaaren was paid by him, and the lawyers and accountants were paid, only $8,100 was split among the 20 cast and crew members.

Casting

Gunnar Hansen, an actor who played Leatherface.

Only a small fraction of the actors hired had previously worked in a film. The cast consisted mostly of Texas actors whose only experience was roles in commercials, television, or theater, while the rest were Hooper's acquaintances. His work on The Texas Chain Saw Massacre allowed several to participate in other film productions. Marilyn Burns, the film's lead, had appeared in a few plays, and while studying at the University of Texas at Austin, she joined the University of Texas at Austin's film commission. Teri McMinn was a student and worked with various theater companies, including the Dallas Theater Center. Henkel saw a picture of McMinn in the Austin American-Statesman newspaper, and contacted her about an audition.

Icelandic-born actor Gunnar Hansen was cast in the role of Leatherface. While thinking about the character's traits, Hansen decided that Leatherface would be mentally retarded, which would be the cause of his slurred speech. Hansen visited a center for the mentally disabled to study his gestures and later adapt them to the character. The relationship between him and the other actors was distant, because they wanted to be truly scared when shooting the scenes. In an interview, Hansen referred to the filming of the film saying, "It was about 35 to 38 degrees while we were shooting in the day. They didn't wash my suit because they were afraid it would be damaged, or that it would change color. There was no money even for a second suit. So I had to wear the mask for 12 or 16 hours a day, seven days a week, for a month."

Shooting

Leatherface's house and family correspond to a farm located near Round Rock (Texas), which was moved to Kingsland in 1998 and transformed into a restaurant.

The film was filmed in the cities of Austin, Round Rock and Bastrop, located in the state of Texas. The shooting lasted four weeks, between July 15 and August 14, 1973. Both the actors and the film crew considered the conditions of the place harsh. The temperature during the scenes was high, reaching 36 °C on July 26; the lowest temperature recorded was 28.3 °C on the 31st of the same month. The windows of the house were covered during filming, because the scenes were set at night. The camera used in the film was a 16mm Eclair NPR, and the film with which the scenes were filmed required light four times more powerful than normal.

Due to its low budget, the film crew had to work seven days a week, between 12 and 16 hours a day, also dealing with high humidity. Most of the scenes were shot in a farmhouse decorated with furniture made from animal bones, which were then covered in latex to give the appearance of human skin. To complete the scene, art director Robert A. Burns scoured various locations in search of decomposing bones and animals, used to cover the floor of the house. Leatherface and his family's house corresponds to a farm that was located on Quick Hill Road, near the city of Round Rock. In 1998 the house was moved to Kingsland and converted into a restaurant.

The film's special effects were simple and limited due to its low budget. The blood used in one of the scenes was real, in the scene where Leatherface feeds Grandpa. The crew had difficulty getting the fake blood to come off the prop knife, so they cut Burns' finger off with a razor. The scene where Leatherface attacks Kirk with the chainsaw had some difficulties during filming; Hansen warned actor William Vail to keep still, as he was having some trouble handling the gun accurately. At the time of filming the scene, the chainsaw passed mere inches from Vail's face. Also, in the scene where Grandpa tries to hit Sally with a sledgehammer and release it several times, the sledgehammer nearly lands right on the woman's head. actress.

Distribution

Premiere

After completing post-production, the team doubted that any company would agree to distribute the film, mainly due to the presence of graphic violence in its scenes; finally, on August 28, 1974, the Bryanston Distributing Company entered into a contract to distribute it. Although the original title of the film was Leatherface, Warren Skaaren suggested that it be changed to The Texas Chain Saw Massacre; the tape was released on October 1, 1974 in Austin (Texas), a year after it was filmed. The film was shown in the United States as part of the Saturday matinee, drawing an audience made up mostly of teenagers. The number of viewers increased when it was announced that the film was based on real events, this as a marketing strategy. In Spain the film was known under the title The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, while in Latin American countries such as The Texas Massacre. In some countries, such as Argentina and Chile, it was also known under the title The Crazy Man with the Chainsaw when it was released on video.

Although director Tobe Hooper expected the uncut version of the film to be rated PG (adult companionship suggested) by the MPAA, the association rated it R (all under 17 years must be accompanied by an adult). The film was also banned or delayed in several countries, and, in some where it was released, it suffered several cuts. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was banned in the UK, mainly due to the efforts of BBFC secretary James Ferman; despite this, the film was later released in some cities with a rating of over 18 years old by the BBFC. In 1977 an attempt was made to cut some scenes so that the film could be released in a greater number of theaters, but without success.

When the Australian Censorship Board first saw The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in June 1975, it refused to release the 83-minute film. The distribution company appealed to the Board of Examiners, which upheld the decision in August of the same year. The company prepared a 77-minute version, but it was again rejected in 1976. The film was introduced by the Greater Union Organization (GUO) five years later, but the ban continued; the reason given by the agency was the presence of a large amount of violence in it. Finally, in January 1984, an 83-minute version was accepted, which was classified for people over 18 years of age.

Versions

Since its release, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has been released on VHS, laserdisc, CED, DVD, UMD, and Blu-Ray formats. Versions on videotape and CED were first released during the 1980s by Wizard Video and Vestron Video. In 1984, the film was again banned in the UK, mainly due to the moral panic surrounding this type of film. Following the retirement of James Ferman in 1999, the BBFC agreed to the distribution of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in theaters and video, almost 25 years after its original release in the rest of the world. DVD of the film was released in October 1998 in the United States, and, due to controversy, in May 2000 in the United Kingdom. Years later, a two-disc DVD was released in region 1, titled The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Ultimate Edition, which included interviews, improved sound and image, and other elements such as deleted scenes. Dark Sky Films released a new version in September 2008, this time on Blu-ray. ray. A three-disc region 2 DVD was released on November 3, 2008, titled The Texas Chain Saw Massacre: Seriously Ultimate Edition.

Reception

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre grossed more than $30 million in the United States, becoming one of the most successful independent films. The achievement was surpassed years later by John Carpenter's film Halloween (1978), which grossed $47 million upon its release. The film won the critics' award at the Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival in 1976. The response from film critics was mostly positive, with TV Guide magazine calling it "a smart, absorbing and highly disturbing horror film that needs almost no blood to pull off." depict violence". Empire magazine called it "the most gruesome horror film ever made". Dave Kehr of the Chicago Reader newspaper wrote, "the images are shocking. more for his intensity than his artistry, but Hooper has talent." Christopher Null of the Filmcritic.com website added, "Within our collective subconscious, Leatherface and his chainsaw have become as iconic as Freddy and his blades or Jason and Jason. his hockey mask".

Others, however, criticized the violence of the film and its special effects. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper wrote, "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is as violent and gruesome as its title promises...it has no apparent purpose, unless disgust and scare it is...yet it's well made, well acted and very effective". Critic Steve Crum described the film as "garbage that sets new levels of brutality". writer Stephen Koch, in a 1976 article, referred to The Texas Chain Saw Massacre as "relentless sadistic violence, as extreme and gruesome as a complete lack of imagination can generate".

Over the years, reviews for The Texas Chain Saw Massacre improved. On the website Rotten Tomatoes it has 90% "fresh" reviews, based on a total of forty reviews. critics; while on Metacritic it presents a score of 75/100. Mike Emery of the Austin Chronicle newspaper called the film "horrifying, but fascinating at the same time... the worst part of this vision is that despite its sensational aspects, it is not far removed from what reality could have been". Film critic Rex Reed called it one of the scariest films he has ever seen, while writer Stephen King noted its "redeeming social merit". it's well made for a movie of its type."

Legacy

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has been considered one of the best horror films in history, having an important influence within the genre. The writer Isabel Cristina Pinedo said: «The horror genre must keep terror and comedy in tension if it does not want to tread the fine line that separates it from terrorism and parody... this delicate balance is achieved in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre where Grandpa's rotting corpse not only achieves terrifying and funny effects, but uses one to exacerbate the other". Scott Von Doviak of Hick Flicks referred to it as " one of the few horror films to make effective use of daylight, from the gruesome opening sequence showing a rotting body on a gravestone in a graveyard." In the book Horror Films, one of critics called it "the most effective gore thriller of all, and, from a broader point of view, it's among the most effective horror films ever made... The driving force behind The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is more horrifying than aberrant sexuality: the dem total ence».

The director Ridley Scott referred to her as a source of inspiration for his film Alien, the eighth passenger (1979). For his part, the singer and film director Rob Zombie declared that The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has been an influence on his work, especially his film House of 1000 Corpses (2003). Ben Cobb, film critic for the chain Channel 4 television called it "a triumph of style and atmosphere, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is without doubt one of the most influential horror films of all time." The Museum of Modern Art, New York added a print of the film to its permanent collection. Entertainment Weekly magazine ranked it #6 in the best cult films, and included it in the top twenty scariest films of all time. times. In 2005, Total Film conducted a poll that ranked The Texas Chain Saw Massacre as the best horror film, surpassing to tapes such as John Carpenter's Halloween and William Friedkin's The Exorcist (1973). Two years later, Time magazine included it in the twenty-five best horror films of all time. Empire magazine conducted a poll of readers and film critics to select the five hundred best films of all time, and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was ranked at number 199.

In May 2014, a restored version of the film was shown in the "filmmakers fortnight" of the Festival de Cannes, to commemorate its forty years. The film was presented by Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn.

Punk rock group the Ramones mention the film in their song "Chainsaw," which was released on their first album. In Spain, the songs of the groups Paralisis Permanente ("A day in Texas"), Airbag ("Family of subnormals all crazy") and Siniestro Total ("The massacre of taxis" or "La sierra es la familia") reflect the influence of the tape in his letters.

Themes and analysis

Vegetarianism

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has been described as the definitive pro-vegetarian film for its insightful approach to animal rights. This is noted by film critic Rob Aeger, who describes the irony of slaughtering humans for food, putting them in the same position as farm animals. The film's director, Tobe Hooper, understood that the heart of the film was meat, the food chain, and the killing of sentient beings. He even became a vegetarian during its recording.Writer-director Guillermo del Toro also became a vegetarian after watching it.

Capitalism

Robin Wood observes that Leatherface and his family are victims of industrial capitalism. His jobs in the slaughterhouse had been rendered obsolete by technological advances. For him, the film brings to light a spirit of negativity that seems to lie not far below the modern collective consciousness. Naomi Merritt also explores the idea of " cannibalistic capitalism,” commenting that the Sawyer family values reflect and align with established and interdependent American institutions, and that the only thing that is truly perverted and transgressed is the execution of these social units.

Accommodations

Months after the release of the VHS version of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Wizard Video created a video game based on the film for the Atari 2600 console. role of the main villain, Leatherface, and his objective is to assassinate intruders while avoiding obstacles such as fences and skulls. Due to being one of the first video games based on a horror film, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre caused controversy due to its violent nature, and some distributors refused to carry it.

In 1991, Northstar Comics created several comics based on the The Texas Chain Saw Massacre franchise, which were titled Leatherface. The franchise was later adopted by Avatar Press., a publisher that published the first of a series of comics in 2005. In 2006, Avatar Press lost the license and the Wildstorm studio - a subdivision of DC Comics - was in charge of publishing new issues. These series presented new characters, Leatherface being one one of the few that appeared in the film; only Leatherface, released in 1991, was based on one of the tapes, Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. The first issue sold nearly 30,000 copies.

Other films

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre had five sequels and a remake—titled The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and produced by Michael Bay—released in 2003. The original film was followed by The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986), also directed by Tobe Hooper. The second part was more violent and graphic than the original, as a result it was banned in Australia for 20 years, ending with the DVD release in October 2006. The sequel was not well received by critics, who felt it it departed from the spirit of the previous one. Gunnar Hansen was contacted by Hooper to play Leatherface again, but the actor turned down the role.

The next film in the series was Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990), which had a budget of $2 million. Hooper did not direct it as he was busy on another film project, Spontaneous Comustion ; His place was taken by Jeff Burr. The film was also not well received. Chris Parcellin of Film Threat magazine wrote, "It's just another slasher movie with nothing more than the Leatherface connection to recommend it to judicious fans." The film, starring Renée Zellweger and Matthew McConaughey, was released in 1994 under the title The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation. The film was intended to be a remake of the original, but changed a few things from the first film. It was the film that received the worst response from critics in the entire saga.

In 2003, a remake of the original film was released, entitled The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The film starred Jessica Biel, Eric Balfour, Andrew Bryniarski, and R. Lee Ermey. Although it was better evaluated by critics than the sequels, the film did not surpass the original. Three years later The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning was released, a prequel to the remake. The tape was directed by Jonathan Liebesman.

A new film, titled Texas Chainsaw 3D, was released on January 4, 2013. The film is a sequel to the original 1974 version, and was directed by John Luessenhop. It was followed by Leatherface in 2017, a prequel to the original 1974 film, making it the eighth film in the series.

In February 2022, Texas Chainsaw Massacre was released, another direct sequel to the original film. The film, directed by David Blue Garcia and written by Chris Thomas Devlin, premiered on the streaming service Netflix.