Product: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Original Uncut) [Region 2] (1974)
Rating: 5.0
Classic terror that will stand the test of time.
Brutal, stylish, atmospheric, terrifing, and classic. These are just a few different words to describe one of the GREATEST horror films ever made. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is everything listed above and much, much more.The movie itself doesn't have a great plot. In fact it is a simple story that goes like this; a group of teen-agers are traveling to spend the summer at two of the teen's grandfather's house. Once there, they each fall victim to a masked murderer who has Ed Gien-like tendencies. The murderer wears a mask made up of human flesh(hence the name "Leatherface"), and uses toys like chainsaws and sledge hammers to murder people with. What he does with the remains is makes furniture with his victim's bones. That's about as far as I go with the plot, because you just have to see the film to see this simple plot expand into a montage of horror, which surprisingly is more psychological than visual.In fact, the strengh of this film lies in the fact that the horror is more psychologically disturbing than anything else. Tobe Hopper really knows how to work the camera, because with a name that features the words "texas chainsaw massacre", the film really only uses a few onces of blood. The rest of the violence you instantly visualize in your head. Hopper really gets under the skin, when the muderer has a hostage in his home and is laughing at her; causing her to literally, go insane.Though the violence is brutal, the movie surprisingly lacks a lot of gore. The scene where the hostage is being tormented, is really the most disturbing scene in the whole movie, because thanks to both the actress's superb acting, and brillant use of camera work and editing, we get into the hostage's mind, and almost go insane ourselves.The movie is everything a horror film should be. It is scary, bottom line, because let's face it, that's what really counts in horror films. I could go on and on about this movie, but I will spare the readers of this, and leave a little bit about the movie to your imanginations.Now the DVD itself. This is a great DVD, that has plenty of extras that are plenty of fun. The blooper reel is particulary fun, because it's called the "blooper reel" for a reason. The comentary is amusing, but not brillant, because some of the comentators loose a bit of what they are thinking half-way through a sentance.But what really makes this DVD a must-have, is the picture quality! This is a movie that was made over 25 years ago, but thanks to the extremely bueatiful transfer, the movie looks like it was made no later than 5 years ago! That is reason alone to have this movie on DVD, rather than VHS.As I write this, Texas Chainsaw Massacre is in production to be remade for a new generation. Will it live up to the original Tobe Hopper classic? Doubtful. But whether it does or not, one thing is for certain; you have to crawl before you can walk. In other words, you must see this classic horror film, before Hollywood get's their hands on the final cut of "their" remake.To sum it up, this DVD is a must-have for ANY horror fan. Even a non-horror fan can learn a few things about indipendant filmmaking, because this is truely a movie that does A LOT with a little. If someone is just starting to get into horror films, this is a horror film you MUST see and MUST own. Plus the fact that this is a great DVD package, doesn't hurt either. Texas Chainsaw Massacre has and will continue to stand the test of time as one of the great horror films of all time.