THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE Tobe Hooper 1974

[The Reaper Man@Cult Labs]

Can't believe there isn't a thread for Hooper's seminal classic on here.....Oh,well there is now...

Unavailable for many years Hooper's unrelenting meat is murder classic sometimes splits audiences,especially younger horror fans.

To me it's a classic piece of low budget genius and deserves it's huge cult following.

What's your opinions on this one?

Where did you first see it?

When it was banned,did you shop overseas for it?

[Make Them Die Slowly]

For me, this is a near flawless exercise in film making and I find it difficult to be objective when talking about it. I struggle to understand how anyone could not love every second of it.

I first saw it in the early 80s, fuelled by cider, with a gang of school friends. It was a brutal yet funny film then and now. After we had watched it, the lad who's house we were round charged into room with his dad's chainsaw! People flew out of the room while the girls were left screaming in their seats.

After it was banned, I heard rumours that it could still be rented under the counter with some of the nasties from a news agent in the town I then lived in. I tracked it down, offered the bloke a hefty price for it but he declined.

[Peter Neal]

I think it's getting better and better all the time, with the (imho actually okayish) remake already looking somewhat dated compared to the original's fierce, apocalyptic atmosphere!

Watched this first on a 3rd generation copy in the early 90's, as it was- and still is!- banned in Germany, before I updated to a slightly trimmed Swedish vhs only to replace that with one of the earlier laserdiscs, which was followed by 3 different DVD releases so far

The German label "Turbine" is still struggling to "un-ban" this classic- whether or not they'll succeed is still completely in the open though due to some "stoopid" and exhausting buerocratic/legal complications so typical and revealing regarding the German "Youth Protection" system...

[The Reaper Man@Cult Labs]

It's certainly an intesnse film.The only time it lapses into humour is when the 'mummified Granpaw' is trying to hold the hammer to bash in Marilyn Burns's head!

Unrelenting terror indeed.

[Make Them Die Slowly]

Originally Posted by The Reaper Man

It's certainly an intesnse film.The only time it lapses into humour is when the 'mummified Granpaw' is trying to hold the hammer to bash in Marilyn Burns's head!

Unrelenting terror indeed.

The whole "dinner party" scene is glorious in it's madness, and for me the stand out scene of the film. It manages to be funny and as intense as **** all at the same time. Genius.

[dis]

think i saw it on a pirate video,back in the 80s.i was about 10 or 11,and back at the time i thought it wasnt that good!
think mainly due to it being banned i was expecting alot of blood and chainsaw killings. now however,i believe it is what started the video nasty saga.driller killer was the same,not that much blood but still banned.
i now think tcm is a great film,great sound effects [ just love the sound at the begginning with the photo sequence ],great for its time and it has stood the test of time and also one of the most talked about horrors ever i think?
wasnt hooper trying to release it has a pg?
only own 2 versions of it,but MAY make it 3 as like the mince meat version,but wouldnt watch it as would like to keep it in its shrink wrapped wrapper.
think we need more threads on certain films?

[The Reaper Man@Cult Labs]

I got my first copy from Cult Video in Amsterdam,along with A CLOCKWORK ORANGE.They were my prized videos!

Picture quality on TCM was shocking though!

[gag]

Like ive stated on here b4 tcm is 1 off my all time fav films.
its gr8 that you can make a film with praticaly no violence gore etc etc yet be controversial is a good piece of film making to me, yet films over the yrs have tried and failed and come and gone without any 1 flinching at the contents, yet its still good to watch even now,
Glad it was called texas chainsaw massacre, because its got a good ring to the title and the original title i think was going to called headcheese

Just think if it wernt for ed gein the chances are tcm wouldnt have been made,
he is the most true life person to inspire so many films,
Even hitchcock admited he possible wouldnt have made pyscho if it wasnt for ed gein

[The Reaper Man@Cult Labs]

Not quite the same impact eh?

The Texas Headcheese Grating?

[bdc]

Took me years before I found a video club where I could rent it,the others only had the sequels.
When I finally saw it I was impressed.
But I do remember that it looked a lot darker and grim (more 70's docu) on that vhs than it does on the dvd releases.
I do still have an original Dutch ex-rental which I managed to pick up later.