The two movies that I’m going to be comparing are “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “House of Flying Daggers,” two completely different films but hit blockbusters in the theaters. Texas Chainsaw Massacre, written by Tobe Hooper, was realized in 1974 and is said to be one of the films that changed the view on horror and how it should be made and produced. Texas Chainsaw Massacre follows a group of five friends in the 70’s, who decide to stay at a old abandoned house for the night after their car runs out of gas. It’s revealed pretty quickly that the houses neighbors aren’t that friendly, with “Leatherface” the killer, killing off most of the characters pretty quickly though gruesome shots with hooks and sledgehammers. It’s later revealed that Leatherface belongs to a family of cannibals and after a terrifying chase scene, the last character eventually escapes Leatherface and his chainsaw. Now this blockbuster is a completely  different mood and film from the other movie I watched, “House of Flying Daggers.” House of Flying Daggers is set in China around the time the Tang dynasty was fighting for control of China.  The film follows closely follows a Chinese soldier, Jin, and his hunt for the House of Flying Daggers rebel leader. Jin approaches this mission by pretending to be a rebel himself to one of the House of Flying Daggers members, Mei, in hopes of her leading him to the rebel hideout. As the film goes on, Jin falls in love with Mei and vise versa, in turn with Jin quitting his spy work for the government to try and help Mei. With these two films being almost polar opposites, I believe they were hit blockbusters in theaters because of the “art forms” they provided to their respected audiences around the world.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre are completely two different films but both were big blockbusters. One argument on why these films were so popular was because of the “art” they came to be and how they changed audiences views on different types of genres. One quote from Slantmagazine says, “What separates Texas Chainsaw Massacre from its predecessors is its anarchic, cynical hysteria—its bizarre and dark-as-hell gallows humor.” I think this is pretty representative of the film, with it being something new altogether to the horror genre and took a step up from all the other horror films out there. Another quote I found interesting about chainsaw massacre was from a YouTube critic review, where the critic said, “…It really feels like something that is meant to exist on its own, not a Friday the 13th or a Nightmare on Elm Street…” I would have to agree with this as well, being that my first view on this film I thought of it being a typical horror film, but analyzing a little further and thinking back to when it was realeased, I now can see and appreciate how it stood out during its time and helped shaped what the horror genre is today. House of Flying Daggers was also influential in its own ways, with Roger Ebert saying, “Zhang Yimou (The director) has made some of the most visually stunning films I’ve seen and others of dramatic everyday realism.” I’d have to agree with this, after watching House of Flying Daggers, I’d have to say some of the scenes in the movies were some of the most visually appealing scenes I’ve scene in a while. Another critic from a YouTube reconises the art from House of Flying Daggers, saying “…Each fight scene was expertly choreographed, to where each fight scene seemed like a graceful dance with death.” The main consensus on these two blockbusters seem to be surrounding the same theme, they are both works of art that stood out among the rest.

This idea of these films being crucial art forms can be seen through the different films movies posters and trailers. 

When comparing these two posters for these films, there is immeadlty some noticeable major differences. The House of Flying Daggers poster is calm with dull colors, while Texas Chainsaw Massacre on the other hand consists of chainsaws and screaming girls with red writing. Although both these films obviously stand for different themes, both were able to be different from their predecessors, giving audiences things they haven’t experienced before.

Trailer for House of Flying Daggers -Link.   

And here is the trailer for Texas Chainsaw Massacre -Link.        

These themes of art diversity can also be easily seen throughout the films trailers. While watching the trailer for House of Flying Daggers, it comes across as bright, colorful, and overall visually appealing film, while Texas Chainsaw Massacres trailer comes as a dark, suspenseful, fear invoking film to the audience. Both of these films were crucial stood for something completely different but were still able to become hit blockbusters because of the way they portrayed different feelings to the audiance. I would definitely consider both Texas Chainsaw Massacre and House of Flying Daggers as art forms, both in their own unique way, and both bringing something new to the table when it comes to the emotions and feelings that a film should invoke in its audience.