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The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
“The film which you are about to see is an account of the tragedy that befell a group of five youths, in particular Sally Hardesty and her invalid brother, Franklin. It is all the more tragic in that they were young. But, had they lived very, very long lives, they could not have expected nor would they have wished to see as much of the mad and macabre as they were to see that day. For them an idyllic summer afternoon drive became a nightmare.
The Events of that day were to lead to the discovery of one of the most bizarre crimes in the annals of American history. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”


In “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”, a film directed by Tobe Hooper, five teenagers take a road trip to visit their grandfather’s grave site and visit the old family home, quite predictably, all goes wrong. On the way, they pick up a creepy hitchhiker who after stabbing Franklin (Paul Partain), a wheelchair ridden, young man is forced out of the van, leaving both a blood streaked van, and a frightened group of youths behind. Upon arrival at the house, the teens begin separating, and likewise, disappearing into the shadows of the surrounding woods and eventually, the darkness of a house of horror. As time marches on, the group is down to far less people than it arrived with, and the image of a full moon backed by howling wolves becomes recurrent, the question arises, who will survive and who will fall prey to the bazaar world that they have stumbled into?

Together, Paul Partain and Marilyn Burns play the roles of brother and sister, Franklin and Sally Hardesty. Franklin, in his unfortunate state, often finds himself at a disadvantage (particularly when trying to escape madmen), and often becomes bitter at determined sister Sally, as well as friends Jerry (Alan Danziger), Kirk (William Vail), and Pam (Terri McMinn). The film’s primary murderer, “Leather Face” is well played by Gunnar Hanson, especially as he switches roles from a relentless homicidal maniac, to an inferior portion of someone else’s master plan.

The films use of scare tactics is a definite plus. From everything to the eerie, voice over introduction to further narration through pulsing music; the chilling mood of the film is quite clear. Following the initial voice over, flashing images of rotting corpses also set the film’s mood. The low, skewed, and obstructed camera angles create the tense sensation of being followed, and also, claustrophobic (unable to escape the situation). Also, symbols, such as the dead armadillo on the road, foreshadow the film’s ultimacy.

As with many horror films, predictability is a downside. This film, along with many others, includes petite women surviving second story jumps onto shattered glass, people successfully escaping death by running upstairs, and so on and so fourth.

All in all, the film serves its purpose; it is suspenseful, frightening and entertaining. As the movie goes on, and person after person stumbles out of their element and into trouble; surprises, excitement and horror ensue

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre directed by Marcus Nispel is a very suspenseful movie. This movie is based on the true story of Ed Gein and the murders he committed in 1973. Jessica Biel in her fifth movie appearance plays one of the main characters as Erin Hardesty. Ed Gein “leather face” is played by Andrew Bryniarski. Mike Vogal playing the character of Andy gives another starring Role. The story is about four teenagers on a road trip through Texas, as they pass through a small town they encounter a girl and soon become involved in the danger.
The movie has many positive aspects to it. The movie keeps you interested because it is very suspenseful and keeps you on the edge of your seats. This movie is so suspenseful because the unexpected often occurs. The scenes are shot very well and there is plenty of graphic content to describe what happened. The movies plot develops well which enables for an interesting story to be told. This movie was not all that bad except for the fact that is was a little unrealistic. When leather face is mortally wounded and still manages to chase the young athletic teenager you begin to ask questions. Other than those occasional unrealistic scenes this movie has more advantages than disadvantages.
The Movie has very similar qualities to that of a specific horror genre. In most horror films the slow killer always manages to catch up with the unharmed victim. This is shown in this movie when leather face catches Erin who is a mile up the road, while a butcher knife is in his chest and a chainsaw in his hand. Another scene where this is present is when leather face catches up to Erin another time with one arm that was cut off.
Another common quality is the dramatic music that is played during intense moments in the movie. When Andy is being tortured by leather face in his basement, there is very suspenseful music to enhance the power of the scene. There is usually tight framing used when they show the killer and another character. In the last scene of the movie they show actual footage of leather face in his basement when he attacks the police who are investigating. The camera tightens up only on his face to show as much to the viewer as possible.
I recommend that you see this movie. There are very suspenseful and unexpected things wrapped around this intense story. This movie also follows many of the characteristics of the horror genre. It also does a very good job as portraying the story of the Massacre.